Mixed Communication
by umbrashadow
Summary: Sometimes its not a lack of understanding thats the problem - it's that the other person understands far too much. With unexpected results. That your best friend is too busy snickering about to help you out with. SasuNaru, ItaDei, AU, Lemons
1. Chapter 1

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character. In fact, most likely my favorite one won't even make it in this story *sigh* have fun in Hong Kong Itachi!!!**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, lemon in future chappie(s?), language per usual, smutty!Deidara**

**A/N: Ok, so I totally meant this to be a PWP oneshot. Alas, plot decided to jump in, especially when Sasuke deided to drag things out rather than just taking what he wanted. Stupid sadistic Uchiha. It'll get there though!**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^ **

**.......................................................................**

Sasuke frowned as he looked down at his last appointment of the day. It was a meeting to finalize the details of the contract for one of their newest international clients. The client was a fashion designer who called herself Sakura. She was quite successful in America, and evidently Itachi's... friend Deidara had fallen in love with her creations on one of his trips over, and Itachi was tired of him being gone every few weeks just so he could experience first-hand the wonder of the Sakura brand. So Itachi had decided to bring the wonder to Japan.

Not that Sasuke could blame him. A happy boyfriend, he'd heard, was an appreciative boyfriend. And an unhappy boyfriend was one who left. Sasuke knew that one personally. His last boyfriend Haku had broken up with him just a few months ago, saying that Sasuke was too cold and traditional and never spent any time on their relationship. He could have salvaged things, he supposed, but the truth was he didn't want to change who he was – and in the end, he hadn't cared enough. He knew it was supposed to hurt more, but he'd felt a strange sense of relief when he heard that Haku had taken up with another man. Like a responsibility had lifted.

The Sakura brand was a good investment, as well. Say what you want about Deidara's behavior, the man had excellent fashion sense. He reviewed the meeting details. It seemed that Sakura would be providing their own translator. He understood English fairly well, but hated having to speak it in negotiations, because his grasp of vocabulary and pronunciation wasn't quite perfect. Besides, it was his habit to not let people know he understood them even if they spoke it. It was handy during negotiations sometimes. Not that he expected anything shady in this business deal. Sakura had a reputation for integrity and a business savvy that was unusual in that type of person. He saw the translator would be Sakura's assistant, one Uzumaki Naruto.

He glanced at the clock. There was still an hour until the meeting, and he knew his assistant Neji would make sure he didn't miss it. He turned towards his window and glanced at the view of the city below before turning back to his work. An hour was plenty of time to get some things done.

. . .

"Wow, Sakura Sakura look!"

The pink-haired woman sighed and looked over at her best friend indulgently. He was peering out the limo window, hand splayed out against the glass. Already, his shirt was untucked from his pants and the tie was undone. She was glad she'd saved the jacket from ruin by insisting he wait until they got to the meeting to put it on. Honestly, Naruto was like a little kid sometimes. Well, scratch that. All the time. Until it came time to get down to business.

He was an absolute charmer with their clients, and some of the photographers that worked with them had been known to beg him to let them shoot him. His unusual mix of Caucasian and Japanese features and coloring did make for good photographs, she knew – she was the only one he modeled for, though. He played it up when the role demanded, but he was always leery of the strange fanclub he attracted. In reality, Naruto was a very private person. He might have the looks, but for most people, it was all look and no touch. She couldn't remember the last time he'd been on a date with anyone, much less in a relationship.

Personally, she thought it was because no one knew how to approach him. He seemed to have an amazing bullshit detector. And granted, she wouldn't want anyone to just seduce him and throw him away, or do anything else to hurt him. Naruto deserved to be treated right. She did sort-of wish that he'd find someone special, though. Even though they spent a lot of time together, she knew he was lonely. Of course, she knew the feeling.

She looked out the window, letting the incessant prattling of the blond soothe her with its normalcy. Inside, she was just as excited as he was. Her eyes darted over the bright lights of the signs as they drove by them, and tried to catch the different outfits people wore. She loved all the crazy colors and shapes and expressions of creativity that were on display. Her fingers itched to grab a pencil and paper and sketch out new designs. She'd have to run around with her camera sometime during their trip to capture all the inspiration.

It was amazing to finally be in Tokyo. She and Naruto had been planning to come here every since junior high when they'd met. They both had Japanese-American backgrounds, though Sakura was adopted and didn't know much about her heritage. Naruto lived with his grandfather, a crazy old coot who insisted that Naruto speak Japanese at home and learn about the traditions of his people. Of course, sometimes those traditions leaned on the odd side, but the man himself was odd. The first Japanese words Sakura had learned on going over to Naruto's house were "echhi!" and "hentai!" when the blond yelled at his grandfather for something he said when she came in the door.

She smiled at the memory. They'd certainly come a long way since then.

. . .

Naruto could sense Sakura's exasperation as she fixed his tie and straightened his jacket. He grinned at her wickedly, knowing she couldn't really resist the awesomeness that was Uzumaki Naruto. It felt really cool to be in a place where people said his name that way. He'd wanted to come to Japan every since he was little. He was excited to be going to their first business meeting. All the previous business had been done in America or through go-betweens, but now they were here for the real deal. This meeting today was with one of the vice presidents of the Uchiha Corporation, the brother of their president. Of course, he'd knew Deidara – who was absolutely crazy, and rumored to be involved with the president – but now he was going to meet one of the real Uchihas. It was slightly intimidating.

He clutched his business case carefully. He'd tried researching all about customs expected. He'd designed meishi – the business cards used in Japan – for both of them. Sakura's were hot pink on the front side with their company logo – a Sakura flower imposed over a swirl – overlapping one edge, and her name and title and contact info in Japanese next to the logo in black. On the back, the design mirrored the front, except it was in english with hot pink on black. His was similar, but with a bright blue that Sakura said matched his eyes. He'd wanted orange, but even he had to agree that orange and black was a bit too much like Halloween.

He hated having to wear a formal suit – but Sakura had said that if she had to wear a conservative dress suit, with a skirt and low heels, that he should be more than happy to just have to wear a suit. He'd offered to switch with her, but her reaction had not been pretty. He really regretted allowing Jiraya to teach her Japanese cuss words. He supposed he should be happy that none of the people on their floor of the corporate offices spoke Japanese, though he was pretty sure at least some of the computer guys know what "baka" meant – and that was one of the milder things he'd been called. Sakura in a temper was scary.

Naruto was grinning at something that Sakura said and thinking of a reply when they were shown into their meeting room. He turned when they were both inside, ready to open his business case to get the cards out, and found himself stunned into silence.

Hyuuga Neji, the man who had brought them to the meeting room, had been hot – long straight brown hair, the palest eyes Naruto had ever seen, and a pretty, almost effeminate face. But the man sitting at the back of the room, furthest away from them – he was gorgeous. Perfect bone structure. Pale skin. Hair so black it was almost blue, and in a hairstyle he never would have expected from a top executive. And his eyes – so black, all he wanted to do was get closer to see how they could be so black and still be real.

The raven's face was expressionless, not revealing anything as he looked them over. But those eyes were intense as all get out. He hadn't felt this gawky around another guy since – well, he couldn't remember how long.

Sakura made the slightest noise at the back of her throat, and looked at him oddly. After watching his gaze, she raised an eyebrow at him, and smirked, just barely, so that their hosts couldn't see. It seemed to take forever, but really it was only a couple of seconds. Only Sakura realized how his normal rhythm had been broken. And knowing how she'd been bugging him to expand his social life – to which he always replied that there wasn't anyone he was interested in expanding it with – there would probably be hell to pay.

They all exchanged business cards. Naruto sat opposite Neji, allowing Sakura to sit directly across from the Uchiha. Sasuke. That was his name. Uchiha Sasuke. Vice President of Uchiha Corp, and total sex god on legs. Naruto was glad that silence was a normal part of conversation in Japan. Oh well, all he had to do this meeting was translate, right? They had most of the major things already worked out.

But of course, Sakura couldn't make things that easy, especially when she was pretty sure that they were the only two in the room that spoke any English. Oh no, not easy at all.

. . .

Sasuke was pleased with how the meeting had started. The woman comported herself with dignity, and seemed to be honestly trying to respect their customs, even if she couldn't speak Japanese herself. Her assistant Naruto was rather a surprise. Sasuke had heard from Deidara that the man had unusual looks, and he hadn't been exaggerating. Idly, Sasuke wondered if he dyed his hair that brilliant shade of blond. He had the most amazing blue eyes, as well. The scars on his cheeks were unusual – he wondered at the story behind that – but his body looked absolutely delicious. Even if the negotiations turned out to be tedious, at least he'd have some eye candy.

The negotiations started out well. Sakura knew her stuff, evidently, and from what he could tell Naruto was a competent translator. As the questions wore on, he saw how Naruto would take Sakura's responses and make sure that they met the Japanese standards for etiquette – maybe the man was more than just a pretty face.

About halfway through the meeting, Sakura slipped in a comment at the end of her response that he didn't quite catch. He did notice that Naruto didn't translate it, however. And then, when Naruto was translating Sasuke's response, he noticed that the blond tacked something extra onto it as well. His tone of voice didn't change, but Sasuke was rather curious why one would be making death threats to ones superior in a business meeting.

. . .

"Tell him that we'll be able to ship product to the ready-to-wear store starting in March, earlier than we planned. And I really think you should reconsider. I haven't seen you be that flustered by a guy since Sai pulled that whole striptease act."

Naruto told himself that once this meeting was over, he was seriously going to give her a piece of his mind. She knew he wasn't going to blow up in the middle of the meeting. And she knew he just had to keep translating. So he did just that, waiting on that sinfully deep voice to come back with an answer.

"He says that would be much appreciated on their part, and asked if we expected to be able to meet the proposed number of new designs per year. And that was only because I was drunk and you know it. Besides he looks nothing like Sai."

"Tell him that I'm finding Tokyo to be very inspirational, and that we have a staff of other great designers who are working with us to provide variety. And I think he looks very much like Sai, actually. Not quite so girly. If I wasn't taken I might try it out for myself. But you're the one who really needs a good lay anyways."

Naruto cursed the warmth going to his cheeks, and chanced a look at the raven to see if he was responding to any of their extra conversation. Really, this was terribly inappropriate, on so many levels. Sakura really needed to stop being able to say the most damnable things in that light, girly tone of voice that made you think she was sweet and innocent.

. . .

Sasuke was an Uchiha. Uchihas never reveal anything on their face but what they want to reveal. So of course, when the blond turned to check him out, he was completely composed. He hadn't reacted to any of the odd little tidbits of information the two Americans were shuffling into the conversation. He was watching Naruto's reactions though. The pink of the blush was just barely there, but it made Sasuke very curious as to how hard the blond would blush if given proper motivation. And how far down that delectable body the blush would spread.

As the conversation went on, Sasuke had to struggle to hold back a smirk. After a while, he stopped paying attention to most of the negotiations – after all, most everything had been worked out already, and Neji could make sure he didn't miss anything important – and started thinking about how he could turn this situation to his advantage. Itachi might yell at him for fucking the client, but hey – Itachi was pushing this through so he could be laid more often by a hot blond, he shouldn't really complain if Sasuke wanted to do the same. And who knows, it might help cement the relationship further. If the woman's lewd comments were anything to go by, she wouldn't be outraged – hell, she might actually encourage it. It seemed that his little blond hottie was going through quite the dry spell.

When the meeting was over and gifts exchanged, they all went up to the top floor with the executive offices. Deidara had plans for a night out on the town with the two Americans. Itachi wouldn't be able to go because he was in Hong Kong that week. Deidara had invited Sasuke, but he hadn't been sure he'd want to go out on the town – normally, Deidara was a bit much for him to handle on his own. Lord knows the long-haired blond must be an amazing fuck, because Itachi put up with some crazy stuff from that guy. But they seemed to both be happy.

After meeting Naruto this afternoon, Sasuke was most definitely going out on the town with them – if only so he could figure out some way of dragging this Naruto back to his place so that he could have his way with him. He wondered, absently, if the blond could dance.

. . .

"Deidara-chan!"

"Naruto-chan!"

Sakura had to hold back a smirk at the look on the Uchiha's face as the two blonds glomped onto each other. Naruto might be acting skittish, but she had a woman's intuition. She could tell that the younger raven was anything but disinterested in her friend. Though it looked like he was starting to have second thoughts about what he was getting himself into.

Well, if he couldn't handle Naruto being Naruto, then he didn't deserve to have the blond in the first place.

She was glad they were going to get to go out and be less formal. That meeting had been rather stiff for her. She would agree it was necessary – though she was fairly certain that, had anything not gone well, she could have Deidara smooth it over – but it was still boooring. At least she had some cool business cards out of the deal, though. She loved Naruto's odd bits of creativity.

'Where do you want to go to dinner, gaki?"

"Ramen, ramen! Hey wait, I am not a kid!"

She blinked as she saw the Uchiha smirking at their conversation. He didn't understand English, did he? Eh, this could be bad. Very very bad. She pulled Deidara aside before they got to the elevator. "You two go ahead! I need to ask Deidara-san about something, we'll take the next car!" Yeah, not suspicious at all. But a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do.

The Uchiha was totally expressionless. Naruto had a slight look of panic on his face. But Naruto could handle himself in any social situation, right? Granted, she'd never seen how he acted around a crush – but she was sure he would be ok. She waited until the elevator doors closed then looked at the long-haired blond next to her.

"Deidara, I have a blunt question to ask you."

"When are you ever not blunt, Miss Cherry-lips?"

"Baka. But um, is your friend Sasuke, um…" she swung her hips a bit, hoping to get the message across.

Deidara smirked. "Batting for my team?"

"Uh, yeah."

"Why, are you looking to take a shot at him?"

Sakura stuck her tongue out. "You know the answer to that. But he seemed to catch the eye of our little friend."

"Hmm." Deidara snorted. "Naruto-chan and Sasuke-kun? Now there's a yummy image."

"Hentai! He's almost your little brother-in-law!"

"Heh, you really don't want to know what goes on in my head, yeah. I mean, did you see the man? Granted, Itachi is much hotter, but still, a man can look, can't he?"

Sakura blinked, and wondered how in the world she got herself into these things. And how Itachi put up with it. From what Deidara had told her, he was even more perverted than the long-haired blond (which would have been hard to believe, if she and Naruto hadn't spent their youth being corrupted by a certain dirty old man's naughty book collection – she knew there was worse out there), but still, she figured he'd draw the line at his lover fantasizing about his younger brother. Probably.

"And Naruto, I mean, he's just – eh, yeah, never mind, never mind." Deidara backed away from the glare in the woman's eyes. "Anyway! Yes, Sasuke is definitely someone who swings this way. As to whether he'd go for Naru-chan, well, he's never gone after blonds before, but…" Deidara tapped a finger against his lips. "That could work out very interestingly. Now, it's too bad I haven't installed a hidden camera in Sasuke-kun's apartment – ow!"

Deidara pouted at the pink-haired woman, who was resolutely turned away from him and was jabbing her finger at the elevator button. The blond was just thankful it wasn't his arm.

"Yeah, but if something happens, will Sasuke treat him right?" Sakura threw back over her shoulder.

"Mmmm, well, if what you're getting at is, I mean Sasuke is definitely not the love em' and leave em' type, but meh," he shrugged, "He's kind of a broody bastard, yeah. I make no promises regarding his social skills."

The doors dinged, and they stepped inside the empty car.

"Well, I just hope things go well. I guess they're two adults, but I always worry about Naruto," Sakura said as the doors slid shut.

"I'm sure it'll be fine, yeah." The blond was silent for a few moments, watching as they descended through the floors. "I would say that Sasuke would finally get that stick out of his ass, but something tells me it's not his ass on the line tonight."

"Deidara!"

"Oh come on. Have you seen Naru-chan?"

"Well yeah, but!"

"I rest my case."

. . .

Sasuke had to pick something up on the third floor, so he told Naruto he would catch up with them at the car. Naruto was silent the whole ride down. He still felt terribly nervous from what all had gone on in the meeting. Aside from that, somehow he had gotten stuck standing near the doors of the elevator, and Sasuke was leaning against the back wall. What if he was checking him out?

Ok, Naruto, deep breaths, deep breaths. You can handle this.

When the doors dinged open, Naruto opened his eyes in relief. Before he could take a step forward though, a deep rich voice way too close to his ear said, "Excuse me."

Naruto automatically moved out of the way, feeling the warmth of the other man as he brushed close to him. He watched as the certain dark-haired man stepped past him out of the elevator, admiring the view until the doors slid closed. Then the thought hit him.

That had been in English, hadn't it? What the hell?


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character. In fact, most likely my favorite one won't even make it in this story *sigh* have fun in Hong Kong Itachi!!!**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, molestation of an innocent blond, lemon in future chappie(s?), language per usual, smutty!Deidara**

**A/N: Ok, so I totally meant this to be a PWP oneshot. Alas, plot decided to jump in, especially when Sasuke deided to drag things out rather than just taking what he wanted. Stupid sadistic Uchiha. It'll get there though!**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^ **

**.......................................................................**

Naruto stood outside the Uchiha Corporation building, enjoying the feel of the cool night air after being cooped up all afternoon. He was looking around at the bright lights and signs that could be seen. He didn't know why, but being surrounded by Japanese was somehow calming. He had about convinced himself that he'd misheard the other man, or that perhaps it was just one of those phrases you picked up from travel guidebooks. There was no way the Uchiha understood English, was there? With everything Sakura had said during the meeting, he hadn't reacted negatively at all. Come on. Who would not react when someone was making comments about their probable length based on hand size?

He was relieved when his pink-haired friend exited the building, followed closely by the crazy long-haired blond. Deidara was one of his favorite people, even if he was certifiably insane, a pyromaniac, and prone to embarrassing comments. When he'd first met the other man, he'd been worried that Deidara was coming onto him. The blond would not stop with the suggestive comments. But when it became clear that, as much as he talked big the other man belonged heart, body and soul to the elder Uchiha, Naruto had been able to relax and really enjoy getting to know him.

The raven followed not far behind. He'd changed out of his suit into a dark blue button-down shirt with the faint sheen of silk over black jeans that Naruto had to tear his eyes away from. Naruto turned to hide a blush when he caught Sasuke giving him an intense, knowing look. He hadn't been staring, damn it! Ugh. Why oh why did it seem the raven was able to pull off sexy without even trying? And why did Sakura think it was ok to smirk at him in that manner?

When the car pulled around Naruto hopped in and sat in the corner, sulking and staring out the window. Deidara, of course, was having none of that. He slid in next to his friend and started poking him. Naruto ignored him for a minute, and then turned in a huff to see the other blond sticking his tongue out. Naruto gasped, exasperated, then proceeded to stick his tongue out as well, making childish faces until he happened to catch the look on Sasuke's face that seemed to say, "How the hell did this degenerate from polite business meeting to people acting like five year olds?"

Naruto pulled back, ready to apologize for his behavior, and then made a face when the raven just smirked at him. He glared at the raven, who looked back totally unmoved. The staring contest went on until Sakura had to smother a snort. The angry blond's gaze was switched to her until Deidara poked him again.

"What?!"

"We're here."

"Eh?"

The blond looked out the window with eyes as big as saucers. Suddenly, all he could think about was the amazing taste of the ramen that would soon be before him. He was walking on air as the four exited the car and went into the small ramen shop. Any in depth conversation with his company was totally ignored in favor of the amazing miso ramen that the waitress soon set in front of him, apologizing for it taking so long. He agreed with her. It had been too long. But now! Ramen ramen. It was like the whole world in a bowl. For a minute, he just stared down into the beauty of it, and then took a big whiff. Finally, he picked up his chopsticks and grinned across the table at Deidara, saying, "Itadakimasu!"

. . .

Sasuke was having a very hard time at dinner.

The first problem was, of course, the language barrier. Of the two at the table who spoke Japanese, one was doing a first rate Hoover impression on an impressive amount of ramen, and the other was someone he didn't often exchange more than polite conversation with (ok, so maybe polite was stretching it a bit). Of course, all four at the table spoke English, but that led to his second problem.

He hadn't realized how close Deidara was to the two foreigners before this evening. He had had this vague image in his mind that there was more of a barrier between them, that the only thing Deidara liked about the Sakura Company was their clothes. It would have been easy to keep the language ability a secret if it was just business relations. But it seemed these two were, in a sense, family friends. When the secret came out, he just hoped he could minimize the damage. Of course he already had plans in play for this for Naruto – but he did not want to embarrass Sakura. Perhaps the loose relations would help minimize any affront she would feel.

His third problem was the loudly-slurping blond sitting diagonally from him. His hormones were telling him to go for a seduction. His good sense was telling him to back off because this would only complicate matters. With his hormones having a field day watching the way the blonde was sucking in noodles, his good sense was having a very bad day. His good taste was backing up his good sense; outside of the meeting the blond was clumsy and had no manners and acted like he was five half the time. But there was something indefinably alluring about this American and his vastly unpredictable behavior that was keeping Sasuke's attention despite the annoyance level.

Compared to the first three, the fact that he had absolutely no fondness for ramen wasn't nearly as important.

. . .

After dinner, the four of them went back to the hotel so that Sakura and Naruto could change into something more comfortable. Deidara had convinced the two Americans – with very little effort – to come with him to one of the clubs where he sometimes did his performance art. He acted surprised when Sasuke agreed to come with them, praising him for not being the ice cold antisocial bastard he normally was.

There was a reason Sasuke didn't spend much time with Deidara by choice. And Deidara just couldn't help but love to push Sasuke's buttons. It was just too easy. When the two others went upstairs to change, they both sat in the car. Deidara decided to do some more pushing, much to Sasuke's annoyance.

"Yeah, maybe you wouldn't be such an ice prick if you got yourself laid, Sasuke. What's it been, six months?"

"Hn," Sasuke replied. He didn't mention more like a year – he and Haku had gone through a very very cold spell before their breakup.

"And before you ask, I'm not offering... even if your brother is leaving me high and dry for a few days."

Sasuke snorted. No, he had his sights set on a much different blond this evening.

"Maybe Naru-chan, yeah?"

Sasuke looked at him with one raised eyebrow. The blond man smirked.

"Oh come on, Sasuke-kun. Do you really think you aren't acting obvious? Well, maybe not obvious to Naruto – yet. He's somewhat dense at times."

"Hn."

"Yeah, yeah, you Uchiha brothers! Why do you have to go and pick on us poor, succulent, delectible, molestible little blonds…" Deidara said, sighing in mock defeat.

Sasuke ignored him.

"One thing, Sasuke. Be careful with Naru-chan. He's special, yeah."

"Hmph. More than just a pretty face and a great ass?"

"So much more! Warm, kind, generous, thoughtful..." ...moronic, clumsy, slightly crazy, Sasuke added in his head... "Why, he's just a little ball of beautiful yellow sunshine!"

Sasuke had to shut his eyes from the overwhelming glow coming from the exuberant man next to him.

"You know, Sasuke," Deidara said slyly, "He might even be able to melt that icicle stuck up your ass."

Once again, ignore.

"Ah! There comes our little ball of sunshine now!"

Sasuke turned towards the hotel entrance and wondered in his mind if there was any tissue nearby. He'd never seen anything quite so nosebleed-worthy as the blue-eyed blond coming out of the hotel. Naruto was wearing big black clunky boots and black pants that flared slightly at the ankles but hugged his body oh so nicely until they hung low at his waist. Above that he wore an orange wife beater with a golden swirl shining against his stomach. To Sasuke's eyes that swirl almost seemed to be saying, "Good times found here!" Atop the wife-beater he wore a black button-up shirt that had flame-like designs picked out in gold, orange, and blue. Naruto also looked quite a bit more comfortable in the new clothes, and there was this hint of ferocity in his walk that made Sasuke hope the man was more than just an easy pushover in bed. Hormones were definitely kicking good sense's ass at the moment.

Sakura, he noted absently, looked pretty good as well. Some sort of black boots laced up with hot pink ribbon, fishnet stockings, a flaring black skirt, some sort of gauzy hot-pink ruffled shirt under a black leather bustier – not to mention impeccable hair and makeup – he supposed it was her own design. He wasn't quite sure most people could pull it off, but he had to admit, the girl could walk the walk as well as talk the talk.

On the ride to the club, Sasuke was perfectly willing to fade into the background of the conversation. He pretended to be looking out the window, but was actually doing a very sneaky job of checking out the hot blond on the seat across from him. His future conquest was very excited about the evening, bouncing on his seat and chattering excitedly with Deidara and Sakura. Every so often, Sasuke was almost positive the blond was sending looks his way. He had to steel himself not to smirk.

Unfortunately, they weren't talking about him. He'd been so interested to see if they'd continue the conversation that they'd started during the business meeting. However, he supposed that Deidara knowing he spoke English ruined his chances on that end, and Naruto was still slightly skittish from his offhand comment in the elevator. Not that he minded a slightly off-balance Naruto. The glimpse he'd caught as he stepped past the blond earlier had been priceless.

Ah well, the night was still young. Sasuke had wanted to thank Deidara for picking a club that was right around the corner from his apartment building – but that would imply his brother's boyfriend had picked the club knowing his ulterior motives. Wait, he had. Ok, knowingly supporting his ulterior motives. That was suspicious. Sasuke reminded himself to check for hidden cameras before molesting Naru-chan in his apartment that night. The last thing he needed to do was become another part of Deidara's so-called explosive "performance art".

Deidara got them waved into the club without a problem. Inside the club's atmosphere was dark, lit by neon on the walls and random flashes of colored lights that flashed over the bodies on the dance floor. Blacklights were scattered around as well. Sasuke caught the Naruto's appreciative glance at his shirt. He was rather proud of it as well – it looked normal under regular lights, but under blacklight, a spectacular design of snakes intertwining around his torso could be seen. Sakura seemed to like the shirt as well. Worked for him. The more inspirations she got on this trip, the more valuable of an asset her company would be for them.

. . .

Naruto loved this place. It was so full of energy; he couldn't help but gawk around a bit. Sakura always teased him that he should be jaded after all the clubs they'd been to – but he couldn't help it. Every one was different, and every one had something unique that sparked off the little creative centers in his brain.

They got a table overlooking the dance floor, and Sasuke ordered the first round of drinks. Before Naruto knew it, he and Sasuke were locked into a subtle, unstated drinking contest. Deidara and Sakura bowed out after the second or third drink, but Sasuke kept tempting him and taunting him, dropping little hints in Japanese whenever he showed signs of backing down. Luckily, the blond had an iron constitution when it came to drinking. Seriously.

Sometime during all of this, Sakura and Deidara slipped out onto the dance floor. For a while, Naruto just leaned back in his chair, watching the bodies writhing on the floor beneath them. He wanted to watch the raven, but he didn't trust himself. If he didn't know better, he would have to swear that Sasuke was planning on coming onto him. He was even more surprised at his own reaction. A part of him wanted it, bad. That part was slowly gaining even more control with all the drinks he'd consumed. Not a good idea.

He met Sasuke's eyes, and waved off the next round of drinks. This time, Sasuke didn't press the issue. They watched the dancers for a bit longer, and then Sasuke stood up and came around to Naruto's chair. Naruto looked up in question, and the raven leaned over, talking in his ear so the blond could hear him.

"Dance with me."

Naruto blinked up at Sasuke. No way. "What?"

"I said, dance with me, dobe."

Oh yeah. Oh no. Yeah, that was English. Oh, this wasn't good. Blue eyes gazed in shock up into smirking black orbs who knew far too much. Oh shit.

"Um, that is, I –"

The raven leaned even closer, grasping the collar of Naruto's shirt and whispering into his ear, "Don't play innocent. You know you want to. Besides, it's just a dance. You do know how to dance, right?"

The blond's mind was reeling too much for him to stop the raven as he pulled him to his feet and lead him out onto the dance floor.

It wasn't until they were on the floor that the Naruto came somewhat to his senses. That bastard – he knew the whole time and he didn't say anything? Anger flashed in the depths of his eyes, but the raven met the look with heat of his own. Naruto was tempted to just stalk away from the dance floor – but the challenge in Sasuke's eyes was something he couldn't back down from. So the bastard wanted to dance, did he? He'd show him a dance.

The DJ switched the beat to something deeper until Naruto could feel the pulse in his very bones. He started to move with the raven, answering the challenge, daring him to keep up. Sasuke did keep up. The anger played out in the dance, distilling itself into desire as their bodies got closer and closer, hands sliding across clothing. When the beat changed again, Naruto found himself pressed to the raven, mouth against the pale skin of his neck. Sasuke's hand was in the small of his back, under his shirts, pulling him closer. The new beat was slower, more sensual. Naruto had to hold back a groan as Sasuke pressed them together, grinding against him. The raven turned his head slightly, breathing into the blond's ear even as his hand crept lower, slipping under the waistband of Naruto's pants.

This wasn't how things were supposed to go. This was way too fast. Naruto broke away from the raven, catching the look of displeasure in the other's eyes.

"I – I have to go to the bathroom," he said, rushing off the dance floor towards the direction of the men's room.

Thankfully, it was deserted. Naruto walked to a sink and ran some water, splashing it on his face. Then he looked at himself in the mirror, shaking his head. He never did this. What was up with this guy? How was the raven slipping past all his defenses?

He looked up when he heard the door open, and saw the raven there, watching him. Desire was all over his face as he leaned against the door, watching the blond to see what his next move would be. Finally he opened his mouth. "Bathroom, ne?"

Flustered, Naruto moved over to the urinals. "Yeah," he muttered. His hand was shaking as he went to undo his pants. He barely had the top button undone when a thought struck him - what part of his brilliant plan included exposing himself before the very guy who seemed to intent on molesting him? Not good, not good.

The question was made moot as two arms snaked around him as the raven's body pressed into him from behind. Sasuke wrapped one arm around his waist and let one hand slide between Naruto's hand and his body, down into the front of his jeans.

"It seems like you have a bit of a problem, Naruto-kun," said that sinfully deep voice, before Sasuke nipped at the side of his neck.

Naruto was drawing a breath to protest when he suddenly found himself in one of the stalls, blinking as Sasuke slid the latch home.

"Shh," the raven whispered in his ear, pressing the blond against the wall and letting his hand slide back down the front of Naruto's pants to palm his straining erection. "They'll hear you if you make a noise."

Naruto started. He could hear the voices of the other men that had entered the bathroom. He blinked at Sasuke before the other decided to ensure his silence with a kiss, squeezing the head of his cock. He could feel the raven smirk at his indrawn breath before demanding entrance to his mouth, plundering it like a man famished.

Naruto was melting into the kiss and the sensation of Sasuke's fingers rubbing insistently against him when he heard the door slam behind the guys who had come in. He pulled back from the kiss, and whispered, "Wait!"

Sasuke looked at him inquiringly, slowing his strokes on the blonds cock but pressing down harder. Naruto tried to catch his breath, looking at the raven but also around at their dingy surroundings. "Not here."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes, and then slowly slid his hand up to the blond's waist, pulling him in for another kiss. Naruto whimpered at the loss of friction. A part of himself was cursing the part that had stopped the raven, even if he really didn't want to have this happen in a public restroom.

Finally, Sasuke broke the kiss, and trailed his lips over to Naruto's ear, flicking his tongue out to tease the edge. "You're right," he said, biting the blond's earlobe and making a small noise of approval when Naruto's body jerked against him. "You're coming to my place."

Naruto pulled back. "But!"

Sasuke glared at him. "Now."

"Sakura!"

"Text her later," the raven replied, buttoning up Naruto's jeans and dragging him out of the bathroom by his wrist towards the entrance of the club, never giving the blond the chance to catch his breath.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character. In fact, most likely my favorite one won't even make it in this story *sigh* have fun in Hong Kong Itachi!!!**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, definate LEMON, language per usual, smutty!Deidara**

**A/N: Yeah, it's been a while since I've written something this graphic (may not be graphic to some people, I'm not totally sure how to judge, I just wrote what came... no pun intended). It's at the end, and I'm not done with this story yet, so if it's too much you can just skip to the next chapter (when I published it) :)**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^ **

**Review responses at the end**

**.......................................................................**

A certain long-haired blond did not in any way, shape, or form miss the exit of two certain men. A smirk crossed his face. Goal!

He motioned to his dance partner that he was going back to the table. She followed him, buzzed from the dancing. As they paused by their table, Sakura looked around, trying to find her best friend. Deidara caught her arm and smirked, shaking his head. He leaned over and whispered, "Let's get some air, yeah?"

Sakura nodded at him. Deidara led her up the stair to the VIP area and outside onto a patio. The air was chilly after the heat of the club, it felt amazing. He peered around wondering if he could catch a glimpse of the two hotties who had just left the club, but no such luck.

"What's up?" Sakura said. She leaned against the railing, wiping sweat from her brow and gazing out on the city lights.

"You remember what we were talking about earlier, with Sasuke-kun and Naru-chan?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, it looks like Sasuke made his move. I saw the two of them running out of here just a few minutes ago."

"Eh? That was fast," Sakura said, frowning. "Are you sure that Sasuke isn't a playboy?"

"When have you ever known Naruto to be seduced by a mere playboy?"

"Well, true, but…"

Deidara leaned over the railing. "And yes, I'm sure. I'm not sure Sasuke would even know how to have a one-night stand. He'd consider it a failure, and he's too stubborn for that. His thing with his last boyfriend should've only lasted a couple months, but he let it drag on for a year and a half."

"Oh, well, that's good. Naruto – well you know him, he's way too much of a romantic at heart – hm."

They shared a look. "Hm," Deidara replied, nibbling his bottom lip. "Well, yeah, un. Let's just hope they actually like each other for more than hot, sweaty man sex. Or this could get –"

"Complicated."

The two moped for a few minutes, leaning against the railing.

"Well, at least there's the hot sweaty man sex," Deidara finally said. "It's been way too long for Sasuke, probably at least a few months."

Sakura sighed. "Yeah. For Naruto it's probably been, um..." She counted on her fingers, murmuring to herself, and then held three of them up.

"Three months? Well, that's not that bad," the blond replied.

Sakura shook her head. "Not months."

"Years?!"

She shrugged. "Well, you know, in college he only dated a couple of guys, and ever since then we've been working, so!"

"You little slave driver!" Deidara had to admit to himself, the image of Sakura in leather with a whip was something he could find very realistic. Not appealing, but realistic.

"Hey! It's not like I haven't been trying to foist him off on someone!"

"Man, three years…." Deidara sighed, and then smirked. "And he's going to be bottom…"

"Hey! What's with that face?"

The blond leered at her. "Think about it."

"What? Ack!" She covered her eyes and shook her head back and forth. "Erase! Erase! I don't need those images in my head! Especially about my best friend's ass!"

Deidara just snickered, and then had a thought. "Oh hey, have I shown you my new phone?" He pulled it out and held it up to her, beaming. "Look! I got a sakura charm! Just to celebrate you being over here!"

"Aww, so cute!" Sakura said. "And don't think I've forgiven you either, baka."

Deidara grinned. "Not like you haven't seen worse, miss cherry lips. Or done worse. Remember, I've met your boyfriend."

Sakura blushed. Deidara smiled in victory, and then checked his phone. "Ack! I missed a call from Itachi!"

The pinkette waved him away. "Shoo, call him and share that dirty mouth with someone who actually appreciates it."

Deidara stuck his tongue out at her. "Maybe you want to listen in, princess?"

"As if! See you in a few!"

"Have fun! Don't give all those guys too many nosebleeds now, ya hear?"

"Don't worry, I'll wait for you before I get through too many of em!"

Deidara shook his head as the pinkette disappeared into the club. He flipped his phone open and pressed Itachi's speed dial, waiting through the ringback music. He always had had a soft spot for Nine Inch Nails. Though it had been amusing to see Sasuke's face the one time he'd borrowed Deidara's cell phone to call his brother. Evidently the infamous ice prince had issues hearing that his brother's phone wanted to fuck him like an animal.

"Hello?" answered a deep, sleepy voice. Deidara just about melted right there.

"Itachi?"

"Mmmm?"

"What are you wearing?"

The other man chuckled, a sound that sent shivers down his spine. "Nothing. Should be wearing a certain blond right now. I thought me bringing Sakura's stuff over was going to fix that problem for me."

"But 'tachi!"

"Hn. I should punish you for it, you know that right? Especially since you missed my phone call earlier."

The blond's breath caught. Itachi could always do this to him; make his mind flood with crazy images. He knew the other man could hear his breath on the other end of the phone, too.

"Though that might have to wait until I get back. Unless..."

Oh, this couldn't be good.

"How about you don't let anyone touch you until I get back?"

"Feh, like I'd let anyone but you touch me anyways, yeah."

"Including yourself?"

The blond's eyes widened. "Itachi!"

More chuckles rumbled through the phone's speakers. "Poor pet. Do it for me?"

Deidara just growled. The bastard was so not fair.

"I promise you, when I get back, I'll take the whole day off, and I will do anything and everything I want to you, baby. And I do mean everything."

"Itachi..." Deidara moaned, frustrated and incredibly horny at the same time, bemoaning the fact that his boyfriend was such an unrepentant sadist.

"And I really wish you were here right now, too. It should be your pretty little mouth on my cock instead of just my hand. It isn't nearly the same."

"Bastard."

"You never did tell me what you were wearing."

"Mmm, just the normal. I'm out dancing with Sakura."

"Having fun?"

"Yeah, yeah," the blond replied, sitting down in a chair and adjusting his pants. "Pants are way too tight now though, asshole."

Deidara could feel the smirk all the way through the phone line.

"Did Naruto not come out with you? I always thought you said you three made quite the hit – jet lag getting to him?"

Now, it was Deidara's turn to chuckle. "He was here, but he's gone already."

"Already? I thought he was one of those self-proclaimed abstinence persons, or something?"

"Well, not quite. But you won't believe this."

"Oh?"

"What if I was to tell you that your baby brother dragged the blond out of here not twenty minutes ago, probably planning on taking him home and fucking his brains out?"

The phone was silent. Deidara checked to make sure they were still connected, and then held the phone back up to his ear.

"Hn."

"Itachi?"

"Interesting."

"Yes?"

"I never knew my brother and I shared a taste for blonds."

. . .

A couple blocks away, two men sneezed in unison, and then shared an odd look. Shrugging, they turned the corner, Sasuke tugging lightly on his blond's wrist with two fingers. He looked back to see what the hang-up was.

"Sec sec, have to answer Sakura's text."

Sasuke growled. "Can't you text and walk at the same time, dobe?"

"Of course, bastard!"

Sasuke just turned and continued on without releasing the blond, forcing Naruto to stick his tongue out at the back of his head before he started replying to the text. "Ack!"

"Watch it! Idiot!"

Naruto relaxed just a bit against the body of the other man, relishing the feeling of his embrace and the fact that Sasuke had caught him so he didn't fall. The raven's next words totally ruined that feeling.

"Evidently you can't walk and text at the same time."

"Hey! Teme!"

Sasuke just gave him a pointed look.

"There was something in the road! Or something," Naruto said, looking down in vain for the offending item. "Maybe I squashed it?"

"Hn." The look the raven cast at him was appraising. "Maybe you're more drunk than I thought."

"I am not!"

"Not that it really matters."

"Hey - what! You'd take advantage of me when I'm drunk?"

"Definitely."

"But that's just wrong!"

"Hn."

"Bastard!"

Suddenly Naruto found himself pressed up against the wall of the building they were walking next too, with a raven attacking his neck. Said raven chuckled at the small moan the blond let escape from his lips. "You like it, dobe," he said, blowing on the abused flesh. "You should count yourself lucky that I'm taking you home instead of taking you right here," he continued, letting one hand slip around to cup the blond's ass, curling his fingers against the crack.

"Bastard..."

The raven let out a low chuckle. "You said that already," he replied, nibbling again at the soft skin of the blond's neck.

"Mm, oh yeah. Well, um, take me home or lose me forever?"

Sasuke stepped back, giving Naruto an incredulous look.

"Did you just quote Top Gun at me?"

"Well, um, yeah?" the blond said, grinning widely and scratching the back of his neck.

Sasuke sighed, and turned back towards his apartment. "Such an idiot," he replied, holding his hand out.

Naruto slipped his fingers into the offered grasp, and grinned as they continued on their way.

. . .

As soon as they were in the apartment, Naruto didn't even have the chance to look around before finding himself with his back against another wall. Sasuke, he was pretty sure, was obsessed. Not that he minded. Though he hoped he'd brought along some turtlenecks.

The raven tugged at his shirt insistently, bringing Naruto back to himself. "Hey, careful, that's my favorite shirt!"

"Hn," the raven replied, nipping a bit more fiercely in retaliation. Then he looked at the blond. "You wore your favorite shirt for me?"

Damnit. There was that blush again. "Maybe," he muttered under his breath.

The raven caught it and smirked, but was gentler as he slid the shirt down Naruto's arms and tossed it in a corner of the entryway. The orange wife beater met the same fate a few seconds later. Naruto felt a hand tugging at the waist of his jeans, and then Sasuke looked around and turned, pulling the blond behind him.

"Hey!"

"Come."

"I don't come on command, you know."

Sasuke turned his head and smirked. "The night is still young."

"Bastard."

Naruto glanced around quickly before he was taken into a bedroom and pushed back on a large bed. He lifted himself up on his elbows and looked up at the raven, pulse quickening at the look of sheer lust in the other man's eyes. For a moment, Naruto started to feel uncertain about the whole thing. This was completely new territory for him – ok, so not the guy part, but the met-you-just-today-and-am-going-to-be-fucked-by-you-tonight thing. Sasuke's eyes softened just a bit in response to the uncertain look, and leaned over for another kiss, banishing all doubts from the blond's head by replacing them with the heady mixture of pleasure and desire.

Then he stood up and started to unbutton his own shirt. Naruto watched languidly as more and more of that pale skin was exposed, unconsciously licking his lips when the shirt was completely off. A buzz of anticipation entered him as the raven started to unbutton his pants, sliding them to the ground without losing eye contact with the blond. Blue eyes flicked down to black silk boxers, then up to even darker eyes as the raven came to the bed and leaned over the blond, placing two hands on either side of his head and dipping into a kiss. Naruto closed his eyes, feeling the warm hot wetness of the raven's mouth covering his own then pulling up, making him lift up to follow it. He felt the smile against his lips, then a harder kiss, over and over, teasing him, making him groan in frustration.

Then the raven kissed his way down the blond's body, tongue flicking out to taste a nipple that was already hardened before continuing down to the spiral tattoo around his belly button. Sasuke pulled him to the edge of the bed and unbuttoned his pants, tugging them down along with his boxer shorts. Naruto could feel his breath ghosting over the length of his cock. Sasuke nuzzled into the skin of his stomach. Naruto opened his eyes and looked down, gazing into those depthless eyes that hypnotized him. He tried moving his hips to encourage Sasuke to move his mouth, but the raven held him down, smirking.

"Impatient, Naruto?"

"Shut the fuck up and suck me, bastard."

The raven lifted up and opened his mouth, letting his tongue flick out to tease the underside of Naruto's straining erection. He made a small noise of pleasure in the back of his throat at the blond's reaction, and looked up, saying, "Don't you dare try to be silent."

Naruto's eyes widened and he shook his head quickly.

"And keep your eyes open."

No problem. He didn't want to miss a thing.

. . .

Sasuke kept eye contact with those gorgeous blue orbs as he wet his tongue and then licked slowly from the base of Naruto's cock to the top, taking the head in his mouth and suckling it gently. The tip of his tongue played in the slit, and then swirled around; reveling in the taste and texture and the sound of Naruto's breathless panting. He brought a hand up, lightly caressing the other man's balls. He loved the softness of the skin and the way he could feel them rolling between his fingers. Giving a good hard suck, he slowly started to bob his head down, taking more and more of the blond's length into his mouth. Naruto's eyes were hooded with pleasure, and his hands were fisting in the sheets as his body strained up towards the raven's mouth. It was harder than he remembered to take it all in, but totally worth the reaction when he swallowed around the hard cock. He rolls his tongue against the blond, switching things up every few moments, trying to keep the blond on edge. When he looked up again, the blond's head was thrown back, and the blush really did extend down further than just his cheeks. So beautiful.

But this was just foreplay. He didn't want Naruto to come just yet.

He lifted his mouth from the cock, licking the head again before saying, "Naruto."

A disappointed groan was all that answered him.

He smirked. "How are you supposed to watch when you're not even looking?" Sasuke purred, nuzzling against the blond's length.

The blond lifted his head and glared at him. "Fucking bastard," he whispered, watching as Sasuke put his lips together and sucked on the underside of his cock, working his way down the shaft. The raven then took one of his balls in his mouth, urging the blond to lift his legs and spread them further apart. He gently sucked on each of the balls before pulling back and letting his thumbs fall to either side of the blond's hole, pulling the skin taught. He let his tongue run flat over the surface, smirking at the blond's indrawn breath, and then did it again. He let the tip run around the edges of the hole. So tight. He wanted his cock buried in this delicious ass so badly, but wanted to make sure the blond was fully ready for him before then.

He let the tip of his tongue try to wiggle into the hole, feeling it spasm around him. So good. But it wasn't his tongue he wanted in there, and he'd need more lubrication than just saliva if he didn't want things to hurt. He sucked at the sensitive flesh, loving all the little noises Naruto made, before kissing his way back up the blond's body. His hand moved to his lovers cock before he kissed him, feeling the blond wrap his arms around him, one hand going down to his silk-covered ass to press him closer, grinding up against him.

"I want to see you," the blond whispered.

Sasuke smiled into the kiss. "Get up in the middle of the bed, and hold yourself open for me."

Naruto complied, watching as Sasuke stood and took off his boxers. Blue eyes widened just a bit at the sight of his cock. Sasuke loved that look of desire. He rummaged in his bedside table and came up with condoms and lotion. Not perfect, but he'd thrown out his lube months ago, and hadn't ever expected to be in this situation. But he was so glad to be here. He took a moment just to admire the sight of the blond on his bed, covered in sweat, tan skin covered in his marks, hands holding asscheeks apart so wantonly. Need radiated off of the skin of the other man, overrode any other expression in his eyes. Sasuke had to hold back from burying himself balls deep in that heat. Soon, very soon.

He crawled over the bed sheets, kissing the inside of the blond's thighs and back up that delicious body, capturing that pouting mouth in a kiss as his knuckles slid up and down the blond's cock. He flicked the cap of the lotion open and took some in his hand, spreading it over his fingers. He let a fingertip rest at the blond's entrance, feeling his partner's breath speed up as he pressed in to the tight heat.

"You ok?" he whispered.

The blond nodded, wrapping his arms around the raven. "Been a while," he said, chuckling.

Sasuke smirked, heat rushing through him at the thought of the tightness that awaited him. He pressed his finger in further, and then moved it in and out, feeling Naruto slowly relax. He distracted him with kisses as he pressed a second finger in, twisting his fingers around.

After a few moments, the blond nodded, and said, "More."

Kissing the blond lightly, the raven teased the blond, saying, "More what?"

"More… please… Sasuke…"

He curled his fingers at the sound of his name, earning a strangled gasp from the blond. Of all the sounds Naruto made, he loved the sound of his own name the most. He could feel his cock twitch in impatience. Almost, he thought, almost.

One more finger to make sure everything was ready. He thrust his fingers in and out of the blond, groaning himself as the other man started to move his hips, fucking himself on the raven's fingers. Sasuke moved his fingers around with each thrust, searching for that one spot – and when the blond arched with a strangled cry, he knew he'd hit the jackpot.

"Sasuke," the blond whimpered.

"What baby?"

"Sasuke, please, just fuck me already, please Sasuke."

So fucking hot. Who was he to deny such a lovely request?

He pulled his fingers from the blond's entrance, ripping open the condom and putting it on before slathering more lotion down his length. He hissed at finally being able to feel something on his own cock and pumped himself a couple of times before pressing the head to the blond's entrance.

He looked up into blue eyes, and said "Ready?"

Naruto nodded impatiently. Smirking, he gathered the blond to him as he pushed in. He nuzzled the side of his head, and said, "I can't promise to be gentle, Naruto-chan."

The blond's only response was to growl and push his heels against the raven's back, making him thrust all the way into that sinfully tight heat.

"Fuck me, just fuck me, just fuck me."

He loved it when a guy talked dirty to him. Pulling back, he proceeded to do just that, the blond meeting his every thrust as he went at him hard and fast and deep. It was amazing. He lost himself in the pleasure, feeling Naruto's hands on his back urging him on, urging him to fuck harder and faster. He turned and caught the blond in a deep kiss, wanting so much connection with him. It was hotter than anything he'd ever done. Breaking the kiss, he whispered, "Touch yourself for me, Naruto. Touch yourself, I want to do this together."

One of the hands on his back slipped down and between them. He gazed into Naruto's lust-hazed eyes, captured by the depth of the blue, feeling his pleasure climbing higher and higher. He was amazingly tight. Sasuke narrowed his eyes in pleasure and kissed him again, letting the pleasure build up, whispering "Come for me, Naruto."

The blond let out a loud cry, the wetness of his release splashing between their bodies. Heat clamped down around Sasuke's cock and he couldn't help it – the pleasure overwhelmed him and he could feel himself releasing, crying out the name of the blond, giving a few more thrusts before it was too much. He collapsed to the side of the blond, slowly withdrawing, gazing into the others eyes as pleasure drifted throughout his body. So beautiful. So fucking beautiful. He lifted a hand and brushed the hair back from the sweat-slicked face of his lover. Fuck good taste. Fuck good judgment. He wouldn't've traded that experience for the world.

**.................................................**

**Review Responses**

**Rizember - yeah, i'm pleased that the plot decided to jump in as well, though I finally made it to the smut :) Are the perv's pleased, do you think? I do hope it is... satisfactory ^_^**


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character. In fact, most likely my favorite one won't even make it in this story *sigh* have fun in Hong Kong Itachi!!!**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, poetic ramblings, language per usual, smutty!Deidara**

**A/N: Yeah, remind me to update the a/n when I am sleepy at 5am posting a new chapter, plz?**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^ **

**Review responses at the end**

**.......................................................................**

Sasuke stood in the doorway of his bedroom, shaking his head as he looked at the blond spread out across his bed. The idiot was already asleep. He must've been more drunk than he let on.

The raven sat down next to Naruto, gently washing him with the towel he'd picked up in the washroom. The blond had one arm crooked over his eyes to shield himself from the light, and his legs were all akimbo. Sasuke was tempted to molest him in his sleep, but knew it wouldn't be nearly as satisfying as it had been when the blond had been awake. He nudged the other mans cock a bit, just to see the reaction as it moved in a slow circle. Even soft, that bit of him looked delicious.

Sasuke sighed, folding the towel and laying it down next to the bed. Now that his raging hormones had been satisfied, his good sense was making a comeback. The cool practical part of his brain was telling him this was just a one-night stand, pointing out that the blond would be going back to America soon. But he hated one-night stands. They always left him with this nagging sense of responsibility. And with Naruto, there was more to it than that.

He remembered the odd moments of compatibility they'd shared during the day. The brilliant smirking grin, the way the blond showed far too much emotion, waving his hands around like a madman when he was excited. But it was refreshing, too. And he thought about how the blond had acted in the business meeting, keeping his cool during the tricky parts of the negotiation, barely letting on when his boss stared acting inappropriate. Deidara was right. Naruto was special.

But he was just an American. How could an American ever truly understand him, even if he was special? Even his countrymen seemed to have trouble understanding the way he saw beauty, the things that calmed his soul. He didn't want a relationship that would be all about the surface, even if it would be fun and intriguing. He wanted something deeper. Even a one-night stand would be better than another shallow affair that made him feel nothing but empty inside.

Haku… what hurt most about Haku hadn't been his departure, but that he'd made such a mistake to start the relationship in the first place. He let his fingertips trace the whiskers-like scars on the blond's cheek, smiling as Naruto turned his head to nuzzle against his hand. It was impossible to compare Naruto and Haku. Haku had been absolutely beautiful; beautiful in such a way that people often didn't realize he was a man. He had been elegant and charming when Sasuke had first met him, like the perfect wakashu stepping out of old-time kabuki theater. Sasuke had been enchanted by the surface, and Haku had been the perfect accomplice in his own seduction.

By the time they both realized what lay beneath the surface, things were far too late. Not that Haku had ever tried to intentionally deceive him. The fault truly lay in his own impossible fantasy, a fantasy Haku had known he couldn't live up to. He tried though. His personality was such that, at the beginning, all he wanted to do was please. Sasuke had found himself with someone who seemed like everything he'd always wanted – and found he barely wanted him at all. The failure haunted him. He'd watched Haku dry out from the inside, faced with an impossible dream, becoming more bitter every day.

When they fought, the wounds had been like papercuts, never striking deep enough to sever anything vital, only deep enough to wound. After a while, Sasuke found that there was not even enough in him to be angry anymore. The words became rote, responses they'd built up, neither one of them brave enough to admit their failure. Until Haku had finally done it, telling him, "I feel like I'm dying here with you. I hate this person I've become. I can't do this anymore."

He'd still been just as beautiful as the first day Sasuke had seen him as he said those words, still so elegant. So strong, to be able to say the words they both felt in their hearts, while the raven kept silent.

Sasuke pressed a fingertip against the still-swollen lips of the man in his bed. No, Naruto and Haku weren't anything alike. He wasn't sure elegant could be a word that was ever applied to the blond at all – but then he thought back to how the blond had sat, so calm, watching the dance floor, looking for all the world like he was sitting still on top of the wave of crazy energy coming off of all the people in the room. And he was so beautiful, though no one would ever mistake him for a woman. And he'd been so vulnerable, looking up with bright blue eyes, lips parted, panting in need.

Sasuke smirked down at his cock, reminding himself that molesting the blond in his sleep was probably not a good idea. He laid down beside the blond, pulling the covers up over both of them. He had to push legs out of the way to get enough room, and curled an arm around the blond's waist. Naruto responded by grunting softly and turning on his side, snuggling back against the raven. Sasuke blinked at the unexpected contact, and found that he had to count to ten and then try to think of suitable relaxing images. Having his cock suddenly nestled against the blond's ass was not helpful, especially since the crack was still moist from their previous activities. Sasuke sighed against the blond's neck, rubbing himself against the so-soft skin, telling himself just a bit wouldn't hurt, and it felt so amazingly good. He stopped himself before taking it further though, turning around so that his back was pressed up against the blond. As consolation, he pulled the blond's hand up and intertwined their fingers; letting their hands rest on the curve of the blond's hip.

Whatever way you wanted to slice it, he had to admit to himself – he wanted more than just this night. Even if just to see how things could be. He wondered if, when they woke, the blond would feel the same way.

. . .

Sakura leaned against Deidara as they climbed into the back of the car, thoroughly exhausted. She flipped open her cell phone and smirked.

"Nani?" Deidara said, looking over.

"Just so you know, I've been kidnapped by a bastard. It's all your fault. XOXO Naru."

"Hah," the blond said, grinning. "But why is it all your fault, yeah?"

"Um, well you see," Sakura said, pausing and looking over at her friend. "Is it possible that Sasuke speaks English?"

"Well, yeah, he's an Uchiha. Hates his accent though, I don't know why, it's so much better than a lot of people. What does that have to do with anything?"

"Well, you see..." Sakura said, proceeding to relay her version of the day's events to an increasingly hysterical Deidara.

"You actually said," the blond said, snickering, "In front of him... and he didn't even react? The ice prick has his act down pretty damn well!"

"Shut up! It's not funny!" Sakura protested, and then broke down into giggles as well. "Well ok, so if you look at it from that point of view, it's hilarious, but – what must he think of me now?"

"Are you kidding? He just got laid, yeah? I doubt seriously he's thinking anything at all of you at the moment."

"Well, yeah," Sakura replied... poor Naru-chan... "But I mean later. I don't want anything to mess up this deal."

Deidara shook his head. "Won't happen. I promise. Besides, I'm pretty sure fucking your personal assistant is a bit weightier than some inappropriate comments during work, anyways."

"Maybe. But –"

"Plus, trust me. There's no way in hell Itachi will keep the deal from going through."

Sakura looked at him, then shrugged, secretly relieved. "Boy, you must have some sort of crazy hold over that man, the way you have him wrapped around your little finger."

"Well, yeah, it's not quite like that," the blond said, looking down with a smile. "But you know this dirty mouth you keep talking about?" he continued, leering at her.

"Ack! Hentai!" she said, squeezing against the car door.

Deidara laughed. "Don't worry, Sakura. I know you... you can't handle the truth!"

Sakura blinked at him. "Did you just quote 'A Few Good Men' at me?"

The blond shrugged. "Nothing wrong with a few good men, yeah?"

Sakura looked at him, then let her face drop into her hands, murmuring to herself as they drove to the hotel about crazy, insane, idiotic blondes and wondering how she ever got herself mixed up with these type of people in the first place. Then she thought of her boyfriend. And sighed even more. One poor, lonely, innocent (well ok so that's a lie but) Sakura, caught between all these crazy, perverted, echhi guys. A few good men, indeed.

. . .

Naruto awoke suddenly in the middle of the night. He felt a warm body pressed against his back and a hand on his hip. He looked back, seeing the black hair of the man he'd slept with the night before. A twinge in his lower back made him aware he'd be reminded of that activity on a fairly regular basis, at least for a little while. He was so out of practice it wasn't even funny.

He curled back over on his side, feeling the raven shift in his sleep, his hand sliding off Naruto's hip. The air between their bodies was chilly. Naruto looked at the clock on the bedside table. Four-thirty in the morning. His sleep schedule was really messed up.

For a while, he tried going back to sleep, but it was no use. It was like his body had this internal alarm system that only worked once in a while, making him fully awake without even having to go through the annoyance of trying to wake up. The only problem was, the alarm went off at the most random of times. No use, he supposed.

He slid off the bed and looked around blearily for his pants. He didn't really feel like putting them on, they were too tight and held too many memories of the previous night. Things he didn't want to bother thinking about at the moment. He gazed around the room and saw a folded cloth on the back of one of the chairs. Picking it up, he saw that it was a simple white cotton yukata. He glanced back at the man sleeping on the bed, face glowing in the faint lights of the city. He hoped Sasuke didn't mind if he wore this around the house.

He slipped it on, going back out into the apartment. The first thing he did was go to the entry way and pick up his shirts, folding them neatly. He looked over and saw his boots there. He didn't even remember when they came off the night before, everything had been so rushed. He remembered every other detail though, memories just waiting to replay in his mind. But not yet. Not yet.

He thought about going back and getting his jeans, maybe grabbing his cell phone and texting Sakura so that she knew he was alright. He didn't want to go back in there yet though. He didn't want to look at Sasuke. Well, he did, but – looking at Sasuke seemed to short-circuit his brain, leave him all fuzzy-headed without any good sense. Sakura would probably say he didn't have much good sense to begin with, but that only meant that he needed to keep a very firm hold on what he did have.

He decided he wanted to learn more about the man he'd given himself to the night before. It was funny how a person's living space could tell you more about them than most words that came from their lips. He supposed it was because people were less guarded in their homes, or never realized how much they gave away. As he walked through the apartment, the only light came from the windows that lined one side of the apartment, letting the city invade the space with ghostly illumination that caused long shadows on the tatami floor.

Venturing deeper, he discovered random pale nightlights that cast everything with a faint blue glow. He glanced into the kitchen. It looked very modern, and rarely used. The dining room was formal with some modern art piece on the wall at the far end, suspended between two layers of glass. It almost looked like a black tree on a very green field set against a snow-grey sky, with a strip of orange sunlight crossing behind the tree. That was probably only one way to see it, because the painting was so abstract – but it was the first thing that came to mind.

Going back into the hallway he ventured into the living room, a massive room that stretched across one side of the apartment. Floor to ceiling windows lined the side of the room. He walked over to them, looking out across the city. Neon flickered on and off in the distance. It figured the Uchiha would have a penthouse suite with an amazing view.

He walked over to the bookshelves on the far side of the room, tracing his fingers over the spines of the volumes on the shelves. He could barely make out the titles in the darkness. He pulled one out at random and flipped through it. He ran his finger down the writing on the page. He didn't know many kanji; his Japanese was best when spoken. But he'd always wanted to be able to read these types of books. Part of him envied Sasuke's knowledge, the chances he'd had being able to grow up in this country. It felt more like home to him than America in so many ways, but he also felt so foreign here.

He walked closer to the window, looking at the different books. At the end of the bookshelf, there was an alcove with a hanging scroll. The picture was simple, pine branches over water that held the faintest glimpse of a black koi. He looked at the detail of the brushstrokes, the suggestion of something from the union of color and space. It was beautiful.

On the shelves closest to the window, he found a stereo system. There was an easy chair across from the stereo next to the window, and headphones lay on an end table next to the chair. Naruto looked at the racks of CDs, wondering what type of musical taste Sasuke had. He was surprised. Some of the music was harder than he would have expected from the man he had met yesterday afternoon, but seemed perfectly suited to the Sasuke he'd hung out with at the club. On a lower shelf, he saw that the selection changed to more classical Japanese music.

His finger paused on one of the CDs, and he pulled it out, holding it up to look at the cover in the faint city lights. Nagasawa Katsutoshi. He remembered that name from his childhood. Jiraya had mainly played Japanese music in the house, had loved anything with the koto and the shakuhachi. He'd said it made him feel like he could give his soul a taste of home. That type of romantic rambling seemed at odd with his grandfather's normal personality, but Naruto supposed that technically he wrote romance novels. Even if most of the time they were short on romance and long on echhi.

Nagasawa was a composer. Naruto had always been drawn to his music. It was different than traditional western classical music. The way the music was tied together by the instruments, surrounded by moments of silence – it reminded him of the picture scroll, so different than western art, which tended to fill in even the smallest space with something rather than leave it blank. He preferred the delicacy, the way the music just existed without forcing the issue.

He ran his finger down the tracks on the CD, and found what he was looking for at track nine. His favorite piece growing up was called Hoshun. He turned on the stereo and loaded the disk, skipping ahead to his song. Picking up the headphones, he put them on and pressed play, ready to adjust the volume as needed.

His ears were greeted with those first plaintive notes from the shakuhachi. He curled up in the chair by the window, feeling the music sink down into his bones. It was easily the most beautiful thing he had ever heard. It was like the melody was dancing over water, growing out of itself, developing a countermelody and drawing it into the dance, ever evolving. He could feel the peace spreading throughout his body. He wondered if it made Sasuke feel the same way. He wondered if he could fall in love with someone who could love this song as much as he did, who could understand why it was so important.

He looked out the window as he listened, leaning his head against the back of the chair. The view was magnificent. Here, you could catch glimpses of the mountains. He wondered what time dawn would be coming. He wondered what the dawn would hold, how Sasuke would react. Would things be awkward? Would Sasuke throw him away, after having gotten what he wanted? Naruto didn't feel like Sasuke was like that – but he'd been fooled before. It may have been years ago, but it was still etched on his heart. Sometimes he wondered if he waited so long to try again because he didn't trust his own judgment, even if Sakura did say he had a great bullshit detector. He felt Sasuke was different, but there was still that niggling feeling of doubt.

He wondered what he wanted, but then, upon asking the question, found that the answer was obvious. He wanted to be loved and cherished and challenged; to be able to share himself with someone else and have that person recognize who he truly was – someone who could realize that there were no masks; every bit of him that he showed to the world was a part of himself. And, a part of him really wanted Sasuke to be the person to do that for him. He never would have come home with him otherwise.

He closed his eyes as he listened to the music, feeling sleep tease against his consciousness, sending images into his mind that only his unconsciousness could hope to figure out. The chair really was comfortable, and the headphones were perfect. This moment, this stillness, was perfect.

. . .

When Sasuke woke up, he found his bed empty. He couldn't help the sadness that brushed against his heart. He'd hoped for something different, but he supposed that was what he got for moving so fast.

He got up, frowning when he didn't see his yukata folded on top of his chair. He must have put it away already. He glanced down at the side of the bed, and raised an eyebrow when he saw the pants still crumpled on the floor. Curious, he walked out into the hall, noting that the blond's clothes and shoes were still in the entryway, though the clothes were now folded and resting atop the boots.

He stepped into the living room, and saw the tuft of blond hair sticking out over the back of his favorite easy chair. Coming closer, he saw Naruto curled up in the chair asleep, wearing his yukata and listening to his headphones. Dawn was breaking. The sunlight illuminated the blond's tan skin, making it almost glow. He knelt beside the chair, letting his fingers play lightly in the spun-gold bangs above sleeping eyes. Curious, he picked up the CD case from the side table. He raised an eyebrow when he saw the artist. Not what he would have expected at all.

The faint sadness from before was replaced by the sheer wonder of this moment, of being able to look at the blond as he slept, seeing the slightest hint of a leg where the yukata wasn't closed properly, looking at Naruto's eyes and wondering what he saw in his dreams.

It wasn't the same as waking up next to the blond, but moments like this, he could accept. They were moments to live into, moments that you hold lightly so they won't burst open into nothingness at careless touch.

**....................................**

**Shadow Kitsune67 - heh, I know that feeling. I like the smut way too much sometimes. Glad I didn't cause terminal blood loss :) and thanks!**

**Rizember - I loooooove Itachi sooo much!!! So much that I might might might possibly bring him back from Hong Kong, though I want the focus in this to be on SasuNaru, and I'm sure he would kidnap Deidara right away for lots of... well yeah. We do know how he is deep down inside :) And I am really enjoying this Deidara as well. Cracky Flaming Deidara is the awesomenest :)**

**SimplyPatti - glad you enjoyed it! Hope you like this chappie as well, even if it's not the smex :)**

**Katsheswims - hope you liked it!**

**norway22 - glad to see you decided to give this one a try :) Hope you revive well from your blood loss and are able to enjoy this chappie as well. And don't worry, I haven't abandoned A Thousand Words! Appreciate your support 3**


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character. But I'm totally admitting the defeat in my effort to keep Itachi in Hong Kong, I just have too much 3 for the bastard ^_^**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, bj, language per usual, smutty!Deidara**

**A/N: So, there's smut in this one too. If you want to skip it, just hide your eyes and scroll down to the first . . . - that should be safe. Theoreticaly. Hopefully. No peeking though ;)**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^ **

**Review responses at the end.**

**.......................................................................**

Naruto blinked himself awake. He must have dozed off. His neck had a slight crick in it, though the chair wasn't terribly uncomfortable. The headphones were no longer on his ears. He felt warmth by his shoulder, and turned to see Sasuke sitting next to the chair, messing with his phone.

Finishing his text message, the raven turned and looked up at Naruto. For a moment, the blond contented himself with just looking at the other man. Sasuke this morning wasn't the cold businessman he'd first met, or the arrogant seducer of the night before. This look on Sasuke's face was calm, contemplative. Almost like his music. Maybe.

"Good morning," the raven said, breaking the silence.

"Morning," Naruto answered, surprised at how husky his voice sounded this early in the morning.

They just sat there, looking at each other, until the raven reached up and grabbed the collar of the yukata, gently pulling Naruto down onto the floor with him. Naruto, being Naruto, fell down none too gracefully, letting out a breath as he finally landed, straddling the other man. When he tried to sit up, he discovered that the cloth of the yukata was caught between them. He lifted up to pull it out. When he sat back down, his indrawn breath was for a far different reason.

"You're naked!"

Sasuke blinked. "You just now noticed?"

Naruto blushed. "I wasn't looking at that, bastard!"

"Ah," Sasuke said, smirking. "What were you looking at?"

"I—"

The raven didn't let him finish, cupping his head with a hand and bringing him in for a kiss. The raven tasted clean. Naruto scooted back on his lap, not wanting to go too far too fast. Sasuke let him, though he did slip his other hand under the yukata and around the blond's back, letting his hand stroke up and down gently.

Naruto wanted to taste more of this calm, gentle Sasuke. He trailed kisses to the others neck, splaying his hands on the other's chest, feeling the raven's quickening pulse under his hands, hearing the small beautiful sounds the other made in response to his mouth. Sasuke turned his head, giving Naruto more access to his neck. His hand slid from the back of the blond's neck to his shoulder, pushing the collar of the yukata down his arm until it was caught by the upturned forearm.

"So beautiful," Sasuke whispered.

Naruto raised his head and looked at the raven inquiringly. Sasuke was looking at the window. The blond turned his head and saw what his lover saw – the two of them in faint reflection. The white fabric of the yukata was pooled around their bodies, in stark contrast to the tan skin of his shoulder and chest. Sasuke's face was flushed. Naruto had a solemn look on his face.

He'd been swept away the night before, so overwhelmed with pleasure that he'd barely done anything. This morning, as he looked down at the naked body beneath him, the pale skin stretched taught over wiry muscles, the wet pink lips and hazy eyes – eyes so black they were highlighted by the darkest grey – this morning, he wanted to taste.

He kissed Sasuke again, lightly, trailing kisses down to the base of the raven's throat. He nipped at the pulse there, but lightly – no marks, not this high up. He didn't want to trespass on the Sasuke who was all business. Even if this was the only chance he had to do this, he wanted to do it with – honor? Respect? He didn't know the word. Maybe care. It didn't matter.

He moved down to the raven's collar bone, down below where the skin would show above a shirt collar, and sucked the skin. He listened to every change in the raven's breath. Glancing up, he saw dark eyes watching him languidly. Sasuke did nothing to stop him, just ran his fingers up into the blond's hair, not directing, just caressing. Neither of them said a word. It seemed neither wanted to break this mood, this moment.

Naruto let his tongue flick out to tease the nub of the raven's right nipple, pressing it in as it got hard, sucking it back out, nibbling gently, letting his thumb play with the other. Sasuke wasn't loud, not yet at least. But in the silence, the small sounds he made illuminated his response perfectly clearly. Naruto wanted to have time to map this body by those sounds, unlock every spot that would allow him to bring the raven pleasure, the spots where he could untie every string of the raven's defenses, to serve this beautiful body. He moved back, feeling the raven's erect length pressing against his chest as he licked and nipped down the other man's stomach.

He lifted his head and looked down at the cock beneath him. The cock that had been within him the night before, so amazingly deep. It was proud and beautiful. He heard the indrawn breath above him, and the lightest of pressure from the hands on his head. He looked up into Sasuke's face, and smiled contentedly. He had no intent to tease. Tease for another time, perhaps, if there was another time. But right now, he wanted to say thanks.

He nuzzled against the length, feeling the amazingly soft skin against his cheek. He let his tongue trace up the vein at the bottom, then gave light short licks around the head. Ok, maybe he was teasing, just a little bit. But he felt – happy. Sasuke was just sitting back, letting him go at his own pace.

He blew against the tip of Sasuke's cock, letting his tongue flick out to taste the precum gathered in the slit. He wet his lips and let them slip tightly down around the head, sucking then pulling back off all the way, smirking at the muffled groan that came in response. Grinning inside, he opened his mouth and slid it halfway down the length, sucking hard as he pulled his head back up, keeping the head inside this time. He paused before lowing back down, bobbing his head slowly, feeling the raven start to move his hands in response – never pushing, just a soft gentle urging, directing his rhythm. He took more and more in, letting his tongue press against the delicious length, using his teeth oh so lightly against the precious skin, keeping his lips tight around the cock so that he could maintain as much suction as was pleasurable. He loved giving blowjobs. He'd really missed them. There was something about them, the fact that he could bring so much pleasure with mouth and sometimes hands. He loved these moments where he was able to concentrate fully on the needs of the other, and not his own. Sasuke had spoiled him so thoroughly the night before, his pleasure came from being able to do everything in his power to spoil the other.

He listened as the raven's breath changed, became more ragged, his muscles tightening. The hands in his hair tugged up at him, but he ignored it. Finally, the raven whispered his name.

"Naruto, I'm about to – you don't have to –"

The blond's only response was to start moving faster, until the hands stopped tugging and tightened in his hair. He glanced up and saw the raven's eyes were slits staring down at him, head pressed back against the chair. He pressed the tip of his tongue against the bottom of the head, and sucked harder, working on a steady rhythm to bring Sasuke to the crest of his desire. The raven shuddered above him, and Naruto could feel the cock in his mouth start to pulse, felt with his tongue as Sasuke's release traveled to his mouth, flooding it. He just swallowed, letting the taste linger on his tongue, milking the cock with his mouth and lips until Sasuke shivered, pulling him back. Giving the oversensitive head one last final suck, he laid his head on the raven's thigh, savoring the taste.

He looked up into eyes murky with afterglow and amazement. After a minute or two, the raven traced his cheek with soft fingertips. He felt the touch trace over the scars on his cheek, so softly. He admired the trail of marks he'd left on the raven's pale skin.

The spell was broken by the buzz of Sasuke's cell phone. The raven grimaced and picked it up, cursing under his breath. He pressed a button and held it to his ear. As quickly as that, the calm look was replaced with the cool mask of the businessmen, though annoyance was slipping past the mask.

"Hello," he said, absently caressing the blond's hair. He listened to the voice on the other end of the phone and said, "Can I call you back in about five minutes Itachi? I'm in the middle of something."

Naruto watched as a faint blush spread across his lover's features. "That's none of your business," the raven snapped, pausing. "It's nothing you have to worry about."

The blond felt a sliver of reality intrude on his heart. He had a feeling he knew what they were talking about. He saw Sasuke glance down and felt the fingers in his hair caress him gently, as if in reassurance. Of course. Even if there were to be more to this than just one night and the morning after, there was still business that would have to be dealt with.

"I'll call you back in five minutes," Sasuke said, hanging up the phone and putting it to the side.

Naruto sat back on his knees, letting the raven pull him forward for a soft kiss.

"Thank you," Sasuke said. He glanced down the blond's body and frowned apologetically. "Sorry."

Naruto smiled. "Don't worry about it. Can I borrow your shower?"

"Of course," the raven said, still frowning. Pouting, almost, but in such a dignified manner.

Naruto chuckled, leaning forward for a quick kiss before getting up. He was walking towards the door when a stray thought occurred to him. Maybe, just maybe, it was ok to take a slight chance. He looked back flirtatiously, and said, "You can just make it up to me later."

The raven blinked at him, then smirked. "Definitely. I'll put some breakfast together while you're in there, if you're hungry."

"Great!" Naruto said, giving him a big thumbs up. He turned back towards the bathroom, still tasting Sasuke in his mouth. He smirked. He was pretty sure the look on his face was much better than that of the cat that ate the canary.

. . .

Sasuke watched as the blond disappeared in a swirl of white cloth. Standing, he reached over and picked up his cell phone, putting the headphones in their proper place and taking the CD out of the stereo to put it away. Before he slid the CD into the rack he glanced again at the album cover, wondering why Naruto had picked that particular composer to listen too. He felt all these small questions welling up in him about the man he'd spent the night with. It surprised him, that he wanted to know so much.

He slid the CD home, then glanced down at his body, fingers tracing the marks left by the hot, insistent mouth that had captured him a few minutes earlier. It was strange to be on the receiving act like that. Strange, but it had seemed so perfectly natural. It was a gentler pleasure than what he'd taken the night before, but it had been so in tune with his mood.

Sighing, he walked back to his bedroom, slipping on a pair of boxer shorts before smoothing up the bed. He flicked his phone on and dialed his brother's number. The last person he wanted to talk to this morning, but he supposed not all of his wishes could come true.

"Sasuke?"

"Itachi."

"Having a good morning?" the elder raven asked.

"Hn."

"How'd the meeting with Sakura Corp go yesterday?"

"Fine. We were able to wrap up all the major details. There are a few minor questions about the final implementation, but nothing that will impact finalizing the deal. Neji is having the lawyers go over the documents for us to sign this morning."

"Good. So – your company this morning – Deidara had some interesting thoughts on who it might be."

Fucking blond, he just had to rat him out. This was just what he needed, his brother getting into his personal business. He wondered if Itachi would get onto him for mixing business and pleasure.

"I'm assuming from your silence that his assumption is correct?"

"Hn."

"What's he like?"

Damnit, he had no idea what to answer to that. He barely even knew, there were so many words in his head right now he didn't know how to distill them down into one sentence. Why did Itachi have to be so direct anyway? All his life, his brother had had a talent of getting under his skin and driving him nuts. Part of it came from him being so damn perfect at everything, so arrogantly cocky – though Sasuke wasn't sure if it was arrogant if you could actually back it up.

Sighing, he said, "You're going to be back on Friday night, right? I'm pretty sure they're staying over the weekend, at least." He felt his voice go flat at the end of that sentence. He refused to admit how the thought of the blond leaving made him feel. He wasn't a teenager, for peats sake.

"Hmm, I had planned to be busy, but I suppose it would be nice to meet them. They certainly do seem to make an impression on my precious people."

Sasuke smirked at that. Itachi might be good at getting under his skin, but Deidara was a pro at exasperating the normally too-cool-for-words elder Uchiha. Hearing the sounds of singing from his bathroom, he felt a vague premonition, but just shuffled it away in the back of his mind, saying, "I'll arrange something. Was there anything else?"

"No, that's it. Thanks for holding down the fort while I've been gone."

Sasuke tightened his fingers around the cell phone in annoyance. Itachi always had a way of speaking as if he thought everything would fall apart without him, and was amazed when it didn't. "Of course," he said. "Have a good day, aniki."

"You too. Ja ne."

Sasuke pressed the disconnect button just a bit harder than necessary and threw the phone onto the bedspread. He checked the time. He was planning on going in a bit late that morning; Neji would keep everything under control. Glad the business with his brother was over, he turned his thoughts to the next order of business. Breakfast.

. . .

Sasuke was sitting at the small breakfast table in his kitchen when Naruto came through the door wearing nothing but a towel. He was admiring the tan skin, watching a few droplets slide down the bare chest and wondering what it would be like to lick the water of that skin when he noticed the blond's expression.

"Granola?" came the outburst to explain the expression. "You eat granola for breakfast?"

Sasuke blinked, putting his newspaper down. "Granola is healthy for you," he said. "Besides, it's not only granola, it's also berries and yogurt."

Naruto sighed and slid into the seat across from him, shaking his head as he looked at the food in front of him.

"What's wrong?" Sasuke said.

"I was expecting oh, I don't know, rice, and miso soup, and tamagoyaki, or something."

Sasuke smirked. "Sorry, I'm not much of a cook. The granola's probably better for you anyways."

The blond sighed, and fixed himself a bowl, moving the food around with his spoon. Sasuke looked back at his newspaper.

"Ne, Sasuke," the blond said.

"Hn?"

"Why didn't you say anything?"

"What?"

"At the business meeting yesterday, about knowing English. Or when Sakura and I started, um, you know."

Sasuke smirked at the light blush on the blond's cheeks, then thought of how to answer. "Mmm, habit, I suppose, about the English. About the other – I guess I wanted to see how far you'd take it. Plus, it was handy knowing how easy it would be to seduce you."

The smirk just widened in response to the blond's glare. The blush just intensified as the blond was forced to acknowledge the truth of those words.

"Hmph," he finally said, attacking his granola.

They ate in silence for a few minutes, then Sasuke said, "Where did you learn your Japanese, by the way? It's very good."

"Oh," the blond said, swirling his spoon around in his bowl. "My grandfather is Japanese. His parents immigrated over in the 1930s, before the war."

He took a bite, the silence reminding them both of the shadows of history between their countries. Then he continued, looking down at his bowl. "He didn't like to speak English, so he had me speak Japanese at home."

"What about your parents? Did you speak Japanese with them?"

"Mmm, no. They died when I was a couple months old. I grew up with my grandfather."

"Oh," Sasuke said, not sure if there was a better response.

Naruto shrugged, looking up at him. "From the way he talks, he's actually got a decent following here in Japan. He's a novelist. I think I may have seen one of his books on your bookshelf."

"Oh? What's his name?"

"Goketsu Jiraiya."

Sasuke choked. That was Naruto's grandfather? He felt a blush coming to his own cheeks. He hadn't bought the book for himself! It was one of Deidara's gag gifts from a few months ago. He just hadn't gotten rid of it, sticking it on the shelf one day when he was busy.

It was Naruto's turn to smirk now. "Funny," he said, "I wouldn't've thought his work was your type, Saaaasuke."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "Idiot," he said, and then leered at the blond. "I'm pretty sure I don't need a book to give me inspiration on just what else I'd like to do to you this morning. After all, I still need to pay you back."

He was rewarded with wide blue eyes and an indrawn breath. "But – work! Sasuke!"

Sasuke chuckled. "I suppose you're right," he replied. "Maybe later tonight?" he continued, feeling a small hope flutter in his chest. "I could take you to one of my favorite restaurants, since we got to go to one of yours yesterday."

The look in the blonds eyes softened, and he looked down, a small smile flitting across his face. "That would be nice," he said, then looked up suspiciously. "As long as it's not all health food, teme."

Sasuke shook his head. "No, just a little place I like. I need to talk to Sakura and Deidara about setting up a more formal dinner tomorrow night anyhow; Itachi wants to meet you two when he comes back from his trip to Hong Kong."

Naruto nodded. He sighed again, looking off to the side. Sasuke could guess the thoughts in his head, the same that had been lurking in the back of his own this morning. He was beginning to get too greedy for the blond, for his time. He wanted to keep this feeling in his heart, make these moments last forever, having the blond here so he could find the answers to all his questions, continue to see that smile.

"Sakura would like that," the blond finally said, looking up with a grin that didn't quite match his eyes. "She's always wanted to meet Itachi. She's sure that half the things Deidara says about him aren't true."

Sasuke smirked. "Knowing Deidara – well normally I'd say he's exaggerating, but you never know with Itachi."

Naruto widened his eyes, all traces of sadness washed away by those blue orbs. "Scary, very scary."

Sasuke agreed. "Very scary indeed."

**........................................**

**SimplyPatti - Glad you enjoyed it! I hope the moments with both of them awake are just as good for you :) If not, I think I ran across a great molesting each other in their sleep story I ran across a while back, somewhere, maybe....**

**Katsheswims - Thanks :) I like peaceful. This one is turning more romantic, in my head, than normal - they don't have the angstyness of teenagers getting in the way, much as I love angsty. Not to say that they won't face some storms, potentially, but it's good to be able to come together in the eye of those storms, even if just for an hour or two in the silence of the night.**

**norway22 - ^_^ 3 you flatter me too much, I eat it up like a cat and cream. I appreciate it very much. I like the way they're turning out too. Totally surprises me, I wasn't sure how these elements would mix together and I'm still uncertain if the whole story isn't a bit uneven, but I'm glad it seems to be working :)**

**Enjoy!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character. But I'm totally admitting the defeat in my effort to keep Itachi in Hong Kong, I just have too much love for the bastard ^_^**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, language per usual, smutty!Deidara**

**A/N: Sorry, no major smut. Major smuttyness and sillyness though, so enjoy!**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^ **

**Review responses at the end.**

**.......................................................................**

Naruto slipped quietly into the hotel suite, planning on tiptoeing back to his room to change. Sakura was not a morning person.

"Naruto!"

As evidenced by the slamming open of a bedroom door by one very unglamorous-looking woman.

"Uh, Sakura-chan, heh," he said, rubbing the back of his head and grinning nervously.

"Naruto," she grumbled, "Do you have any idea what time it is?"

"Eh, uh," the blond checked his watch, "8:30?"

"YES!"

Naruto, faced with an angry screaming hungover Sakura, began to back away carefully.

"And what time is our meeting at Uchiha?!" the pinkette continued, advancing on the terrified blond before her, catching him with his back to his bedroom door.

"11:00?"

"YES!" Sakura shrieked, not giving Naruto enough time to reply before continuing, "And you still have to shower, and shave, and get dressed, and eat breakfast, and then we have to drive to Uchiha corp…"

"Um, I've already eaten breakfast and showered," Naruto said, ticking those two off on his fingers and nibbling his bottom lip as he thought, "and we should have plenty of time to do the others… what's the problem?"

"When are you going to have time to tell me DETAILS?!"

Naruto blinked. And closed his eyes. And pursed his lips, counting to five, before sticking his tongue out and blowing his boss a big fat raspberry. "Nyah, pervert!" he said, before slamming the door in her face.

He hummed happily to himself as he went through the close he bought, ignoring her yelling and pounding on his door. Thank goodness! He had packed a turtleneck, lightweight cashmere in a royal blue that would be perfect for the evening.

He walked over to the dresser and looked at his neck critically, looking over at the door in suspicion when things went quiet. Shrugging, he looked back. What had Sasuke been thinking? Wincing as he rubbed one of the marks on his neck, he thought back, and grinned. He sure remembered what he had been thinking. And it wasn't a thing to do with how the marks would look the next morning.

Maybe a scarf? Or maybe Sakura had some makeup? Hmm...

He went over and opened his door, peering down.

Sakura looked up from where she knelt, giggling innocently. She tried unsuccessfully to hide the objects in her hands.

Naruto smirked. "You need those types of tools to pick a lock on a hotel bedroom door?

Gasping indignantly, she stood up. "Well if you hadn't slammed the door in my face!"

Waving a hand at her, he walked around the pinkette toward her room. "Yeah, yeah," he said. "You know, just because you feel the need to regale me with all the details of your little perverted excursions doesn't necessarily mean I'm going to do the same for you!"

"But Naru-chan!"

"Hmph." He walked over to her makeup bag and stared at it curiously. "How the hell do you use all this stuff anyways?"

"Eh?"

She came over and stood beside him. He pointed out the discolorations on his neck, and she snickered. "Oh. That."

Naruto stuck his tongue out at her again and said, "Yeah, that."

"Mmm," she said, glancing at him slyly. "Details?"

He sat down on her bed and sighed dramatically. "Can't I just say it was good and leave it at that?"

She giggled. "Silly Naru-chan, of course not!"

He rolled his eyes and leaned his head back, letting her get to work. "Why are you always so hyper the morning after we go clubbing anyways."

"You're one to talk," she said, poking his chest. "But maybe you're just tired this morning because you didn't get any sleep? I'm surprised you're walking around so well too."

"Bite me."

She snorted. "Looks like someone got there first."

"Oh, trust me, he did," the blond purred, and then grinned. "It was amazing."

She grinned back at him. "Oh really? Was it as long as –"

He swatted at her hand. "Not kissing and telling!" he said, letting the grin soften into a smile. "But I like him."

"Good," she said, using a sponge to smooth the makeup over the marks. She looked up at his face to see him nibbling his bottom lip, a faraway look in his eyes. "What's wrong?"

"Mmmm, it was amazing, but ya know, it's kinda shit it had to happen here."

She was silent for a moment, not quite knowing what to say. She finally settled on a simple, "Yeah."

Leaning his head back and examining her work in the light, she picked up a spray bottle and misted it over his neck. "But who knows," she continued. "Make the best of the time you have, right?"

"Yeah," he said softly. "Oh, by the way, I'm not gonna be able to join you guys tonight."

"Oh really?" she said, smirking at him. "Should you pack an overnight bag this time?"

She patted him on the back and he went over to the mirror, checking out her work. "Thanks. And no, I'm sure it'll be fine."

Sakura smiled at him in the mirror. "I'm happy you had a good time," she said, enjoying his good mood for a moment. Then she slaped him on the ass and laughing mischievously when he winced.

He flipped her off and walked out of the room. "You'd better get yourself ready, pinky!" he yelled back at the doorway. "Wouldn't want to be late to our meeting!"

"Yeah, yeah!" she yelled back, "Wouldn't dream of it."

Naruto grinned, making his way back into his room to pick out a decent suit for the meeting.

. . .

When Sasuke got into the office, Neji was sitting at his desk, reviewing paperwork. He glanced up at his boss, pale eyes taking in the sight without changing expression. Sasuke figured Neji probably suspected what had happened the night before – he was uncannily perceptive sometimes – but doubted he'd say anything. During work hours, at least.

"Thanks for covering things this morning. Any messages?"

Neji handed him thick packet and a piece of paper. "Two from the Tsubasa corporation regarding the follow-up to their initial request, one from Monara Imports regarding the incident with customs last Thursday, and one from Inuzuka corporation following up on the results from last quarter. Oh, and you have a visitor."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, and then smirked, heading inside. There were very few people that Neji would let inside the office when Sasuke wasn't there. One of them stood looking out the window at the sky, a cigarette in hand.

"Nara, how many times do I have to tell you not to smoke in my office?" the Uchiha complained, walking over to his desk. He sat down and flicked on his computer, putting his messages down on his desk. The other man just waved his fingers absently at the raven, putting his cigarette out in an ashtray provided for his visits. At some point, the brunet had decided there were times when it was too troublesome to even say troublesome.

"You have the details?"

Sasuke nodded, opening up the packet and pulling out the finalized contracts. He reached down into one of his desk drawers and pulled out a file folder, handing both to the man next to his desk. Shikimaru took them and walked over to the small conference table on the far side of the room, sitting down and opening the folder.

Nara Shikimaru was one of his oldest friends, and the only person he could think of that was probably smarter than himself. They'd competed throughout high school and university for the top ranking spot – Sasuke had won, but mainly because Shikimaru found it too troublesome to push for a prize he didn't care much for anyhow. He was now one of Uchiha corporation's best project managers. Sasuke had tapped him to handle the launch of Sakura in Japan, at least from Uchiha Corporation's side.

Sasuke checked his email and worked on taking care of all the pressing matters at hand. One thing he enjoyed about Shikimaru – he understood the raven's need to just sit quietly and work to get maximum efficiency out of his time, rather than having to waste moments with empty talk.

"Looks good," Shikimaru said, not glancing up from his perusal of the documents. "They're meeting here at 11:00?"

"Yes. Harnuo Sakura and her assistant Uzumaki Naruto. They'll be here to finalize the contract and meet you, so don't piss them off."

Shikimaru shrugged dismissively, and said, "Yeah, yeah, no problem."

Silence reigned supreme in the office for a few minutes, before the brunet again broke the silence.

"By the way, Sasuke when did you get a boyfriend?"

Sasuke whipped his head around to look at his friend, briefly opening his mouth to reply before realizing he didn't have a snappy comeback. Annoying. Besides, the blond wasn't his boyfriend!

Not that the idea didn't have certain attractive characteristics, mind you...

. . .

When they were greeted by Neji at the Uchiha building, the first thing Naruto noticed was that they were taken up to the level with executive offices instead of the conference room they'd gone to before.

As the long-haired man showed them into a large office, Naruto's eyes found themselves automatically scanning the room for Sasuke. He found him sitting at a desk on the far side of the room, looking at him. He saw the coal-black eyes flick down to his neck and a quick series of expressions barely touch the surface of that calm exterior, making him curious. Then he just spent a moment looking at the raven, still somewhat dumbfounded.

He was distracted when another man stood and walked over. They exchanged business cards. Sasuke came and introduced him – in English.

"This is Nara Shikimaru. We would like to suggest him as project manager for the launch, if it meets your approval."

Naruto glanced at Sakura. She didn't seem surprised at the language, though her eyes lingered thoughtfully on the raven.

He saw Sasuke and Sakura exchange an unreadable look before the raven continued, "The contracts are here and ready to review. First though, if I might have a word with you, Sakura?"

Naruto blinked, watching as the two walked off towards the desk on the other end of the office. The Nara cleared his throat, and Naruto looked over at him. He didn't really look the part of a businessman. He had a suit on, but it seemed somewhat relaxed, not crisp. The man's hair was done up in a ponytail atop his head that stuck straight up. Naruto noticed nicotine stains on his fingernails.

"Uzumaki-san," the man said.

Naruto shook his head. "You can call me Naruto."

The other shrugged. "I've been going over the proposal and contract, but have a few questions. Would you mind?"

"Sure, no problem."

Naruto took one last glance over at the two on the other side of the room before following Shikimaru over to the table and sitting down.

. . .

As Sasuke walked over towards his desk, he had a slight frown on his face. He knew it was petty, but it was still disappointing to not see the evidence of his kisses on the blond's neck. There was a deep possessive animal instinct in him that made him want to mark his territory – even if the rational part of his brain was insisting that, for one, the blond wasn't his territory (yet), and for two, it would be potentially awkward for Naruto to shown up with them visible.

He schooled his face before turning to the pinkette. "Sakura-san," he said, bowing his head slightly.

"Sasuke-san."

"I would like to deeply apologize for my behavior yesterday."

The pink-haired woman frowned slightly, but waited for Sasuke to continue.

"I misled you into thinking that I did not understand English. It was inexcusable of me. Please do not let my behavior reflect poorly upon our company."

"Oh," Sakura said, visibly relaxing. Sasuke hated apologizing, even if it was just a formality.

"No apology is necessary, Sasuke-san," she replied. "If anything, I should be the one offering up an apology for my behavior. Please forgive the informality of my comments; it was unprofessional of me and unworthy of my company."

"Not at all, if I had let you know, no shame would have come to either of us."

"Hmm," Sakura replied, looking down for a second with a frown on her face. "Forgive me, but I am merely a foreigner. Do you normally just keep on trying to one up each other's apologies until someone caves?" she quipped.

Sasuke had to stifle the chuckle that threatened to break free. "I'm pretty sure I can't top the foreigner bit." He totally ignored the message one corner of his brain sent him about how he had topped a foreigner, and quite well, thank you.

Sakura looked up at him, smirking. "We cool, then?"

Blinking, Sasuke searched his brain trying to remember the meaning of that particular idiom. "I believe so," he finally replied, gaze glancing over to the table. The two men were hunched over the paperwork in front of them. Sasuke had to push down the stray thread of jealousy that arose from seeing another man so close to the blond. It looked like they were getting along well, though there were moments Naruto seemed to be concentrating too hard to try and understand what Shikimaru was trying to get across to him.

Sakura glanced behind her, following his gaze. "This Nara fellow, he's good?" she said.

Sasuke nodded. "The best. He sometimes comes off a bit lazy, but his strategy is near-flawless, and his execution is very effective."

Nodding, Sakura said, "Sounds good."

"Do you have anyone picked yet to manage operations once everything is in place?"

"We have a few candidates in mind," she replied, looking at Sasuke's face searchingly. "We wanted to finalize things before moving ahead with that decision."

"Hn."

"On a more personal note?"

The raven's gaze left the table and came to rest on the woman in front of him.

"Would it be inappropriate to ask what your intentions are?"

Sasuke blinked, looking over at the blond. "Hn."

Twitching her lips, Sakura said, "Fine. I'll just trust you to be honorable, please. He's important."

The raven gave a short nod. He wasn't sure where things were going to go with the blond, but he had every intention of treating the blond with honor – well, as long as that included getting the blond naked as many times as possible while he was in the raven's immediate vicinity.

. . .

Naruto had to physically stop himself from bouncing up and down with excitement. He was still slightly buzzing from getting to spend more time around the raven, never mind that it had been basically a boring business meeting and that lunch had consisted of – ack! – sandwiches brought up while they went over paperwork.

He and Sakura had escaped after lunch and were now walking down Takeshita-dori in Harajuku. They'd gone back to the hotel and changed first. Naruto was wearing jeans and a simple orange t-shirt with the word "Nani?" in blue on the front. Sakura wore a hot pink t-shirt over black jeans. Her pink hair was pulled up under a black cap, and she was wearing sunglasses. It was doubtful anyone would recognize her, but you never knew – they were trying to keep their move into Japan hush-hush, but rumors were bound to have cropped up.

The pinkette was enjoying her anonymity by acting like a major tourist, snapping pictures every which way. She was probably more excited than the blond next to her. Neither one of them could keep still for long – there were just too many things to see and look for. The street was crowded with people and shops, and advertisements were everywhere – on buildings, hanging like flags above the shops, lit up like signs – everywhere. And the clothes people wore were so diverse, even seemingly normal outfits were often highlighted by one outlandish accessory - and the clothes in the shop windows went way beyond outlandish.

Naruto chuckled to himself at Sakura's rampant picture taking. He remembered stories about how you would always see Japanese tourists in America shooting pictures everywhere, and how some companies felt like they'd taken the pictures back to Japan and use them to reverse-engineer American products. He supposed that he and Sakura were just as bad. But whatever worked!

They were set to meet Deidara at a McDonalds for a snack before going out shopping. They found him sitting inside in a corner booth. He was wearing sunglasses, his blond hair pulled up in the normal ponytail, wearing a bright yellow "EAT ME" t-shirt and torn up jeans. All in all, Naruto was pretty sure they were the plainest-dressed people around. Deidara jumped up and squealed when he saw them, glomping onto Naruto right away and giving him a huge hug and a not-so-subtle grope to the ass. Naruto lightly punched him in the stomach and sat down. The other blond laughed and hugged Sakura before sitting back down across from his two friends.

"I'm so glad to see you up and about, Naru-chan!" Deidara exclaimed delightedly.

Naruto growled at him. "Bite me."

The long-haired blond giggled, sharing a look with Sakura. "I would, but unfortunately, my biting privileges have been temporarily suspended. So? How was it? Details, details?"

The shorter blond narrowed his eyes. "What the hell is it with you guys and details, anyhow?"

"Well if you want, I'll go first. I had this amazing talk with Itachi last night after we left the club, though he was being a total major bastard. Do you want to know what he wanted me to do?!"

"NO!" came the voices of his two friends, surprisingly in unison. They looked at each other and giggled.

Deidara sighed. "Fine, fine, you're no fun. But that means you have to fess up, Naru!"

"Ack!" Naruto sighed, and glared at his two friends, finally sighing in defeat. "Fine. Ok, iwenthomewithsasukeandwehadsexandwenttosleepthenthismorningigavehimablowjobandtookashowerandwehadbreakfast."

The two others blinked at him.

"What?" Naruto said, shrugging. "You wanted details!"

Deidara twitched his lips. "Was it good for you?"

The younger blond blushed. "Well duh."

"Naruto and Sasuke are going on a date tonight," Sakura said, breaking into the conversation.

"Oh reaaally?"

Naruto nodded, looking down at the table.

"Is it order in, and blondie for desert?"

Opening his mouth to protest, Naruto realized the last part would probably be true. Hopefully. He couldn't help the smirk that crossed his lips at the thought of being in that deliciously vulnerable position again. Or another position. So many possibilities. Ack! When did he start thinking this way about an almost total stranger!

"Well, Sasuke actually said that he was going to take me out to dinner at some little place he likes," Naruto said, trying to cover up his reaction to the earlier question.

"Oh!" Sakura said, "That reminds me! Sasuke invited us all out to dinner tomorrow night – us three, Itachi, Sasuke, and the new guy Shikimaru."

"Itachi?" Naruto said, gulping. Suddenly the idea of meeting the family so quickly made him nervous.

"Yeah," Deidara said, a faraway look in his eye as he thought of his lover. "He's coming back right before the dinner. Oh, and I don't think I'll be able to see you guys Saturday."

"Eh? Why?" Naruto asked.

Sakura nudged him in the ribs. "Duh."

"Oh." He could feel the heat from another blush dusting his cheeks. "Well, um, have fun?"

"Trust me," Deidara said, stretching lazily. "It will be way more than fun. It's going to be absolutely exhaustingly mindblowingly –"

"Ok ok we get the picture!" Sakura said, cheeks just about matching her hidden hair. Then she sighed. "I'm going to be all alone this weekend, aren't I?" She sniffed piteously, and Deidara patted her hand gently.

"You could always just fly Kakashi over for day or something," he said.

The pinkette made a face. "Nah, he's at a photo shoot in Rome or something. Again."

"Poor lonely baby. It's too bad that man has absolutely spoiled you for sex, or I'd suggest getting yourself a little piece on the side."

Sakura stuck her tongue out at him. "It's not just sex, you idiot."

"Sure, sure. Naruto, remind me again how those two met?"

"Well, you know, Sakura was skinny dipping in her pool and this paparazzi dropped into the yard because he fell out of the tree he was hiding in when she surfaced from the water. He was carrying about five icha icha books that scattered on the ground when he fell. Jiraiya got to him before pinky did, since she was busy putting her clothes back on. They got into this nice little conversation about jiji's work before our lovely Sakura came staling over and beat them both up for peeking, before dragging Kakashi back to the house for lots of wild hot monkey sex. That's about it, right Sakura?"

He glanced over at his friend, ignoring the look of absolute rage in her eyes, the pulse pounding in her forehead, or the way her hair seemed to be crackling with static energy.

"That's about what I remember," Deidara said helpfully.

"You… two…" Sakura ground out, clinching her fists.

"Now now, miss cherry lips, we're in public," the long-haired blond reminded.

Naruto smirked. "Yeah, and besides, you didn't think I was gonna let you get away with that shit from yesterday with no consequences, did you?"

"Hmph," Sakura said, narrowing her eyes. "I hope," she continued, poking him none-too-gently in the chest, "that Sasuke fucks you so hard that you can't walk for a week! And you!" she turned, pointing at Deidara, "Same thing with Itachi! But two weeks!"

The two blonds looked at her, thinking about the implications of her words. Then they looked at each other and shrugged.

"Me too?" Deidara said.

Naruto shrugged. "Could live with it, I guess."

The pinkette looked at her friends in exasperation, and then started to giggle. Pretty soon all three of them were in on it, ignoring the strange looks they received from the people around them.

**.......................................................................**

**Review Responses**

**norway22 - I love the flattery, don't get me wrong :) glad you're enjoying this story! It's terribly fun to write once I get things going - and, I know where I'm going with it, which makes it even funner!**

**Rizember - more Deidara for you!! And, I suppose the two of them will just have to make the most of the time they *do* have, ne?**

**SimplyPatti - glad you enjoyed it ^_^ I love em myself - hope you had fun with this one!**

**Stavi - thanks much!!! I'm not sure what the secret is to getting reviews, all I know to do is write - but its so much fun to get the review notices, especially if they're reviews from people who obviously see what i'm trying to do and love the story as much as I do!**

**HoshitheHorse - thanks! and shh :) maybeee... we'll see. Naruto is going to have to leave though. But we'll see what happens from there... enjoy what happens while he's still in Japan!**

**mina - thanks muchly!!! Glad you enjoy :) **

**5Angel - stalk away. I adore your reviews :) (sent you a pm by the way, dont know if you get them) - feel free to flood my inbox as much as you want, you're one of those people whose reviews I enjoy the most! I so appreciate you telling me what you like about the story! As to significance - maybe. Its part of the distance between them, in that they aren't just from different countries, but from different countries that have a history - and that history affects them personally in some ways, as well. But I may touch on that a bit more later... we shall see! Hope you enjoy this chappie!!!**

**A/N - oh, by the way, if anyone reads manga, can i just reccomend Heaven's Love? One of the reasons it took me so long to update was that I've fallen for this mangaka's work, and omg, Hard and Dust... squee! Anyways :)**


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character. But I'm totally admitting the defeat in my effort to keep Itachi in Hong Kong, I just have too much love for the bastard ^_^**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, language per usual, smutty!Deidara**

**A/N: A bit fluffy in places :) but hopefully enticing! I so wish I could be there, too! And not only to spy on the boys. Well, ok, mainly....**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^ **

**Review responses at the end.**

**.......................................................................**

Naruto fidgeted with the newspaper on his lap. It was in Japanese. If anyone asked, he honestly couldn't say he could understand much of any of it. It gave him something to do with his hands, though. Better than getting his cell phone out and playing with it again.

He was sitting in a chair in the hotel lobby, waiting for Sasuke. He'd had plenty of time to get showered and changed after they came back from shopping. Sakura and Deidara had wanted to go back out, and Naruto had shooed them away from the hotel suite, assuring them that he was old enough to shower and get dressed on his own. Now, he almost wished he had the company.

He couldn't remember the last time he'd been on a date. Years, probably. Sometime in college. Even then, he barely dated. Even in his relationships, it was more a matter of hanging out together than going on some sort of official date. He was getting a bit old to be inexperienced at this type of thing, but there it was.

He checked his watch again, sighing. It wasn't like Sasuke was late picking him up, or anything. It was just that he'd been done early because he wanted to make sure he was ready on time. He'd washed all of Sakura's makeup off of his neck, hiding it instead under the brilliant blue turtleneck. The skin had ached as he scrubbed it, but it was a delicious reminder of the night before. He couldn't help but anticipate what the night would bring, and shuffled the newspaper in his lap to distract him from thoughts of the raven's hard body pressed against his own flesh, demanding everything. He wasn't quite sure how he was going to make it through dinner if that kept up.

The blond turned back to the paper. He was trying to piece together some sense out of the article in front of him when he felt fingertips brush against the back of his neck. He jumped, almost falling out of the chair as he turned to look at the person behind him. He scowled at the smug look on the raven's face.

"Teme!"

Sasuke just chuckled.

"You could've just said hello, or gotten my attention like a normal person!"

Smirking, the raven leaned over and took the paper out of the blond's hands, whispering a low "Hello" as he leaned over. He stood back up and eyed the paper critically, then folded it and put it on top of the coffee table in front of the chair. Naruto swallowed as he saw the raven look at him with that same searching look. Something told him that if he had a tail, he would be wagging it at the faint look of approval that resulted from the raven's perusal. Approval, and appreciation, all toned down so that only Naruto noticed.

"Are you ready to go?" Sasuke said finally, glancing down at his watch. "I thought we could take the train, if you'd like. Probably easier than messing with parking."

"Sure! Is it ok, I brought my camera?"

"Of course."

Naruto grinned at the pleased look on Sasuke's face, and stood to follow the other man out of the hotel. He admired the figure in front of him. Sasuke had chosen to wear blue as well, though his was darker than Naruto's shirt, and just a tad bit indigo. It was a brushed silk button-down shirt tucked into dark grey slacks. The material looked soft to the touch. Naruto was tempted to feel it, but he wasn't sure how the raven would react. There seemed to be this slightest bit of distance between them – but it wasn't a bad thing. Even if Sasuke wasn't touching him, he had the feeling that the raven knew exactly where he was. It was almost as if they didn't need to touch, not yet. There was promise that touching would be soon to come.

They walked a few blocks in silence. Naruto couldn't help feeling like a major tourist, gawking at the buildings around him. The dark red building of Tokyo station was beautiful as they came upon it. It seemed very western in its appearance. The blond had to hurry to keep up with Sasuke in the mass of people rushing for the train, though the raven slowed a bit when he noticed that Naruto was having trouble.

"Sorry," Naruto mumbled once they finally were able to stop in front of the train platform. "Not a lot of public transportation in Los Angeles."

The raven just nodded, allowing Naruto to enter the train ahead of him when it came. There were not empty seats, so Naruto grabbed the metal bar in front of him, watching out the window. He could feel Sasuke behind him. The raven kept some distance between them, holding onto the side of the seat next to Naruto as they sped north. Even so, Naruto fancied he could feel the heat of Sasuke's breath against his neck, and felt hypersensitive to the times when they brushed against each other as the train careened down its path. They finally got off at Ueno station, where they exited the train and traveled up to the promenade.

Naruto couldn't get enough of the view. He felt like a little kid, standing up against the railing, taking in the view from all sides. The sun was just starting to set in the west. He grinned back at Sasuke. The raven stood watching him, hands stuck in his pockets, a slightly bored look on his face. Naruto jumped down and punched lightly at the raven's shoulder.

"Just because you can come look at this view whenever you want doesn't mean I can't enjoy it, bastard."

Sasuke shrugged him off, a faint smirk crossing his face. "Idiot. If you don't hurry, we're going to be late for our reservation."

"Eh?"

Naruto scowled at the raven, but followed along behind as he led his way off the promenade and down into the city streets. The buildings they passed looked older, less modern, and the streets were barely wide enough to let one car pass alongside the ones parked on the side of the road. It was a different side of Tokyo than he'd seen before. Finally, they came to a small restaurant. The doorway was set back under a tiled awning, and red lanterns hung on either side. Pictures of different dishes were displayed in the windows below the lanterns. Naruto was surprised – the place didn't look quite like what he had expected. He glanced at the raven, and smiled at the calm in the bearing of the other man. Someplace he liked. Someplace private. Someplace special. It made Naruto feel special, too.

Sasuke ushered him inside and spoke to the proprietor in a quick voice. Naruto had a hard time following the man's comments, his accent was unfamiliar. The blond and Sasuke were shown to a table set back in a recessed area. Their host slid the screen shut, giving them privacy.

"Kappou Suigyoku," Naruto said, reading the menu. He looked over the other dishes in puzzlement.

"If you want, I can just order for both of us," Sasuke said.

The blond looked up at him suspiciously. "You're going to decide what I can eat? I'm not a woman, you know."

Sasuke's lips twitched, and Naruto felt a foot slide lightly along the inside of his ankle. "Of that, I am very aware," the raven said, giving the blond a look full of promise for later in the evening. That slight touch, after the time spent close but not that close, was enough to send Naruto's libido into overdrive. He swallowed, and looked back down at the menu, the dishes blurring together as he tried to concentrate on something other than the warmth of his companion.

"However, I'm more familiar with this place, and, well," Sasuke said, pausing a moment. Naruto looked back up at him. Was that – shyness? "I'd like to help you get a taste of different types of traditional cuisine. Not just ramen." He looked at the blond almost hesitantly, and Naruto gave him a small smile. He got it. Sasuke wanted to show off something about Sasuke. For now, Naruto decided, he'd sit back and learn what the man in front of him was willing to show him. He was willing to try almost anything once, after all.

So he just sat back as Sasuke communicated their order to the waiter, taking his time to admire the man across from him. Sasuke was in his element. It was obvious he came here often; the server was familiar with him and treated him with jovial deference.

The first thing that came out was a bowl of soup. It wasn't miso soup or ramen, or any other soup that he was familiar with. The light broth contained some dark grey – was that fish? He looked up at Sasuke and raised an eyebrow. The raven just motioned for him to try it out.

He lifted the bowl to his lips and took a sip. It was good! He licked his lips, trying to catch every drop of the light broth mixed with a certain sweetness and a slight citrusy flavor. He noticed Sasuke's eyes on his mouth and grinned. The raven's eyebrow rose in question.

"It's good, Sasuke. What is it?"

"Hn." Sasuke looked pleased, and took a sip for himself. "Grilled eel soup in a citron base."

Never would he have thought to order something like that for himself. He was glad he'd let Sasuke take over the menu for the evening. Each course that came out showcased different styles of traditional Japanese cooking. The portions were small, just a few bites each – but that meant they could both share each dish and still have room for the others. Soon Naruto found himself caught up in all the different flavors, asking Sasuke about each dish. The raven's pleasure became more and more obvious as Naruto shared what he liked about the different types of food. Occasionally he rolled his eyes at the nonstop chatter, but Naruto didn't take offense. He loved his food, and wanted to make sure Sasuke knew how much he was enjoying himself.

Eventually Sasuke just gave in. "You're so loud, moron," he said, fondly.

Naruto grinned back unrepentant. "You didn't seem to mind last night – meep!" The feeling of a foot crawling higher on his leg made the blond scoot back on his bench.

"Trust me," the raven said, smirking, "I didn't. But you don't have to let everyone and their brother know that."

Sticking his tongue out at the other man, Naruto picked up the last piece of shrimp tempura and opened his mouth to take a bite. He smirked as he saw the raven's eyes drawn towards his lips, and made an exaggerated moan of pleasure as he held the delicious morsel in his mouth.

"Idiot," Sasuke said finally. Was that a note of strain in the raven's voice? Why yes, it was. He licked his lips again, tasting the savory sauce he'd dipped the tempura in. This game of temptation was definitely something he could get addicted to in a hurry. He was surprised to find how much he'd missed the easy flirtation, and there was so much about Sasuke that made things even hotter.

Not that their talk was all about sex, mind. As the meal wore on, accompanied by the best sake the blond had ever had, their voices fell into an easy conversation about random, unimportant things. They talked about movies. Naruto teased Sasuke about the cartoons he'd watched growing up, saying he wanted to hear him sing the Doraemon theme song. Sasuke countered with threats about the Thundercats, and then backed down quickly when the blond proved prepared to do just that. It got to the point where Naruto didn't really care what they were talking about, he just wanted to be able to watch the raven's beautiful face, catching a glimpse at the emotions hidden behind the stoic exterior. He knew it was infatuation, he could feel himself falling, but he didn't really care. For the moment, he just wanted to be happy.

After dinner was over, they walked back towards the station and crossed into Ueno Park. Sasuke made sure they stayed to well lit areas. The blond was content to listen as his host explained about the different features of the park, all of the things it offered during the day. The raven told him about the cherry blossom festival held there every spring. When Naruto piped up with an idea about how they could celebrate the opening of the new store at the festival, they both fell silent. It was a reminder that their time together was not permanent, even if they wanted it to be.

Naruto felt torn between his life and what he had found here with Sasuke. He remembered when he was younger and it had seemed so easy to just give up all his ties to his hometown and run away to Los Angeles with Sakura. Now, things were different. He and his best friend had worked to build up their brand, pouring countless hours and overcoming both their failures and moments of too-quick success that threatened to unravel all their progress. And of course, there was his grandfather – he wasn't so young now. There was no telling where he would wander off too next. Naruto sometimes felt nervous about leaving him home along even for a few days.

He sighed, leaning against the railing of a bridge in the middle of a lily-covered pond. He knew he wasn't looking at the brightly-lit skyscrapers across the water. A hand rubbed the small of his back, and he turned toward the raven with a smile, startled by a quick kiss. He glanced around, but the area they were was deserted. Leaning against the raven, he licked his lips again, finding that there wasn't enough of Sasuke's taste left on them to satisfy him.

"Sasuke," he murmured.

"Hmm?"

"Thank you."

The raven nodded absently against his shoulder, and then said, "I always like it here at night, but it's probably better to show it to you during the daytime."

He snaked and arm around the blond. They stood there together, Naruto's fingers overlapping the ravens, taking in the view. "It's peaceful like this, though." Naruto said finally.

"Hn."

Naruto turned in the raven's arms, and looked up at the shadowed face of his companion. He lifted a hand to brush the raven bangs from the pale face, and leaned forward to give him a kiss, just a bit less innocent than the one Sasuke had given him. He let his hands rest on the raven's shoulders, confirming the fact that the shirt was indeed deliciously soft. "Ne, Sasuke," he said.

"Hn?"

"Thank you for a wonderful evening."

Sasuke chuckled, a deep rumbling sound that sent shivers up and down the blond's spine. "The night isn't over yet, dobe."

"Teme," Naruto said, though the word was without the sting of insult. Instead, he changed the subject. "You're going to get cold in just that shirt if we stay out here too much longer."

Smirking, the raven said, "Is that your subtle way of hinting that we should go back to my apartment?"

Naruto blinked bright blue eyes up at the raven, putting on his best innocent face. "Why, whatever gave you that idea?"

Shaking his head, the raven just stepped back, inviting Naruto to follow as they walked back to the train station. The blond missed the physical contact, but it heightened things even more than before. They were able to get seats on the train ride back to Tokyo station. Sasuke's leg was warm against his. The anticipation built as they made their way back to Sasuke's apartment building.

They barely got in the elevator when Naruto found himself shoved back against the wall, wrapped in Sasuke's heated embrace. The raven tugged down the neck of Naruto's sweater, humming in appreciation as he spied his work from the night before. Naruto rolled his eyes before gasping as he was assaulted by a pair of hungry lips. He could only mutter a hushed "bastard" as his bruised skin was worked over, feeling the raven's body pressed against him as a hand assaulted his ass from behind.

The elevator ride was over all too quickly. He suppressed a small moan of disappointment when the raven stepped back, admiring his handiwork. Naruto was already way too hot. The dark possessive look in Sasuke's eyes only turned up the heat, and the blond knew he was way more drunk on the raven than he was on the last bit of sake working through his system. He had to shake his head as he was dragged towards Sasuke's apartment. He had a feeling his poor body was going to be battered and bruised if they kept this up – but there was no way he was turning back now.

**. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .**

**Review Responses**

**Katsheswims - thanks!!**

**SimplyPatti - hehe, another one of those moments where I didn't really realize the smuttyness until after I'd written it down. Though, I like how it stands on its own without the smuttyness, too!**

**sakurananachan - thanks :) hope the update continues to meet your standards!**

**5Angel - salivate away :) hope this chappie was yummy for you, and I promise you won't have to wait as long for even more yummy stuff to come your way. This chappy was total SasuNaru ness, though it was fun describing the landscape too. I'll get into Naruto and Sakura's childhood a lil bit later on, I think - was going to do it this time but they were having too much fun talking about inconsequential things. And yes, I'm not a huge KakaSaku fan, but for this story i don't know - it just seemed to fit with their personalities! I think it helps that they weren't Sensei-Student..**

**Afira - thanks! Hope you continue to enjoy it!**

**anonymous uke - I'm glad you took a chance on the story. I dont know if I'll get 10 reviews or more per chappie with this story (at least not all on one site). Happy to be able to surprise you with the concept, hope it continues to keep your interest!**

**hollowsmile - thanks thankks :) I'm a total sucker for ita/dei too.... missed Dei this chappie, but don't worry, we will be seeing more of him... and I'm definately all excited about the entrance of mister Darkness himself**

**skyglazingMaro - SasuNaru = totally sexy, and don't anyone forget it! I have a feeling that Itachi is definately going to make things interesting for our two boys... as for their future together in Japan, we'll just have to wait and seee....**

**Smuttyness comes to those who wait! Thanks for reading!!!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character. But I'm totally admitting the defeat in my effort to keep Itachi in Hong Kong, I just have too much love for the bastard ^_^**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, language per usual, smut smut smut, smutty!Deidara**

**A/N: Ok, so this is basically pure smut. Some humor. With more smut to come later, too - hope you don't mind, and sorry I'm taking so long to update lately!**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^ **

**Review responses at the end.**

**.......................................................................**

Sasuke fumbled a bit with his keys as he unlocked the door. He couldn't help it; his head was full of all the things he planned to do to the hot blond attached to his back. Naruto had his arms wrapped around the raven, fingers already seeking out the buttons on the silk shirt.

He chuckled underneath his breath. "Impatient now, Naru-chan?"

The only answer was a soft nip at his shoulder and the blond grinding his body against the man in front of him, proving just how impatient he was to get inside. Smirking, Sasuke finally got the door open and pulled Naruto inside, slamming the door shut and pushing his partner's body against the closed door. He dropped his keys to the ground and captured Naruto in a harsh kiss, letting his hands slide down to the bottom of the bright blue sweater and tugging it up and off. Naruto assisted without complaint. His hands went back to the work of unbuttoning Sasuke's shirt once the offending sweater hit the ground. The raven pulled back and looked down at his lover. The fierce hungry look in the blond's blue eyes was enough to take his breath away, and he felt his own lips twisting into a smirk. It was amazing, the extremes of emotion to be found on that face. It was so expressive. He couldn't wait to see all the ways it would twist in pleasure this evening.

At the moment, it was twisting into a pout because Sasuke was refusing to help take off the silk shirt. Chuckling, he relented, letting the blond slide the soft material down off his arms as he kissed the blond again, slower this time. Teasing him. Once the shirt was off, he slid his hands down to Naruto's pants, cupping the oh-so-obvious erection before unbuttoning and unzipping the pants, letting them fall to the floor, boxers following shortly thereafter. Naruto gasped into his mouth as the raven palmed the blond's length. Sasuke couldn't help but kiss him harder, sliding his hands up to pull the blond's shoulders closer even as he pressed his clothed erection against his lover's nakedness. The blond cursed against his mouth, hands clutching the raven's back. He seemed caught between deciding whether to kick out of his own shoes and pants or get to work removing Sasuke's. In the end, the raven relented, pulling back and undoing the pants as he continued to kiss the blond until both of them were stark naked and writhing against each other, pressed back against the hard door.

Sasuke pulled back first, smirking at the angry look in the blond as he held him at arm's length, letting his gaze wander down over the blond's body. "So sexy, Naruto," he murmured, eyes widening appreciatively at the reaction as the blue eyes looked to the side almost shyly and a blush dusted the scarred cheeks. So the blond liked dirty talk, eh? He could dish that out. He leaned forward blew into the exposed ear, letting his tongue tease the lobe closer to his mouth for a light nip. "I've been thinking all day about what I'm going to do to this sexy body of yours to pay you back for this morning, Na-ru-to…"

The blond just moaned and struggled to get closer. Sasuke let himself brush against the blond, kissing him harshly before moving to the edge of the entryway and looking back. Naruto looked absolutely delectable, leaning against the door, already breathing hard.

"Come here," said the raven, motioning for the blond to follow. The blond caught his breath and nodded, pushing against the door and falling in behind his lover. They didn't touch, but the current between them was like live electricity as Sasuke led them into the bathroom to the shower. He pushed Naruto up against the wall of the shower, directly underneath the showerhead. Naruto hissed at the initial coolness of the water, and Sasuke covered his body in another languid kiss, waiting as the water warmed. He turned his head and licked at the water collecting on the blond's collarbone. It was delicious.

Angling the showerhead away from their wet bodies, he took the soap and started lathering up his lover's body, eyes never leaving the other's blue-eyed gaze. Those eyes were glazed over with lust, and the bright pink lips were open and panting, letting out beautiful noises as Sasuke's hands traveled all over. When the raven's hands wrapped around the blond's stiff erection, Naruto closed his eyes, leaning his head back, hands trying to find some purchase on the tile wall. He let his legs open wantonly as one of Sasuke's hands wandered over the blond's balls and further back, teasing the skin between those sacks of flesh and the sensitive pucker. Naruto glared at him when the raven pulled back, quickly lathering himself up before grabbing the showerhead and using it to rinse off his own body before angling the spray over the blond.

He loved the noises Naruto made as the water ran over his nipples, and how he cursed and tried to jerk away when Sasuke angled the spray lower over even more sensitive flesh. Sasuke grinned wickedly and pulled him closer into a kiss. The blond held onto his shoulders to try and keep his balance. Sasuke pulled one of those hands down and wrapped it around their erections, swallowing all blond's lovely noises with his mouth. Once he was confident the blond had the rhythm, he let his hand trail back around to Naruto's ass, fingers delving into the crack to tease at his lover's entrance. The blond jerked closer to him and he chuckled, ignoring the muffled protests as he slid one fingertip inside, wiggling around in time to the rhythm of the hand on their cocks. Naruto moaned into the kiss and began pushing back with each thrust until he felt another fingertip press inside.

The blond's head felt to Sasuke's shoulder as they continued to move in unison. He felt Naruto start to tremble, and angled the forgotten showerhead just right so that the water hit the unprotected entrance then away in time to their thrusts. Naruto cursed and stilled, trying to wiggle away from the stream.

"What the fuck, bastard?"

Sasuke curled his fingers in Naruto's entrance and jerking against him. "Keep moving."

"But Sasuke," he whined, "it feels weird."

The raven turned his head and bit his lover's neck, never stopping the abuse to both the front and rear of the blond. After a bit Naruto gave in and started moving again, circling his hips in a vain attempt to avoid the water, panting as he drew closer to completion. Sasuke was close as well, and dropped the shower head at some point, pulling the blond close as they thrust against each other frantically. The raven heard Naruto's keening cry as he came, and caught him before he fell, wrapping a hand around the blond's suddenly slack one to finish himself off with a rough grunt. They slid down the shower wall until the raven was kneeling between Naruto's legs, leaning against his chest as they both came down.

"Bastard," Naruto finally said, huffing against the raven's shoulder. Sasuke just turned off the water, leaning back and looking down at the blond spread open before him, ignoring the weak glare Naruto shot him as he pushed the blond's legs further apart to get a better view. He let his fingertips trail over the muscles in the tan legs, wanting to touch everywhere. It was still so amazing to him, having this body in front of him, his and his alone to play with. Not just the body, no – that it was Naruto's body, the Naruto that pulled him closer in so many ways he wasn't even conscious of it, who was so amazingly responsive to his touch, whose laugh made him feel warmer than he had in years. He wanted everything the blond had, everything he could give him.

He looked up into the face of his Naruto, frowning when he saw the blue eyes starting to droop. He lifted a hand up to the tan chin and lifted it, meeting the blond's gaze.

"No falling asleep yet, Naru-chan. We're just getting started – if you're up to it?"

Blue eyes widened at his challenge then grinned back. "Oh I'm up for it all right. Haven't worn me out yet bastard."

Sasuke smirked. "Good," he replied, leaning in for a long, languid kiss.

. . .

Naruto leaned his head back, savoring the taste of Sasuke's kiss. He had absolutely no resistance to the raven's advances. It was like his whole world was narrowed down to those lips, those hands, that body, and the way they drew him out of himself into this wanton needy person. He loved it, and at the same time felt so vulnerable, so exposed.

The problem with sex had always been this craving for it. It was easy enough to ignore when he didn't have a partner, but once he let someone in, it was all too easy to turn into this writhing mass of sensation under their touch – though he didn't remember anything quite as intense as being with Sasuke. It hadn't happened with his first lover – that had been too quick and painful – but his second lover had enjoyed it, at least during sex. Afterwards, he'd said it was a little strange – then patted the blond on the head and said he didn't really mind. The third, he'd overheard talking to his friends about him like he was a toy. If he had an asshole detector, it was because he'd learned the signs from experience.

When Sasuke pulled back and looked down at him, a part of him wanted to pull away, close his legs, hide himself from those hot black eyes. He looked away, feeling the blush burn on his cheeks. A gentle touch on his shoulder made him glance back into a gaze filled with warmth and appreciation.

He watched at Sasuke ran his fingers over tan skin, tracing patterns across his chest, stroking down. The touch was soft and soothing; it didn't pull out the intense excitement he'd felt earlier. He supposed it was like being petted. He didn't resist when the raven pulled him into an embrace, wrapping arms around him. He held Sasuke close, clinging as his lovers hands caressed up and down his back. He felt – cherished. He relaxed against the other's body, not minding when the chill crept over his still-wet skin. A part of him wanted to stay this way forever.

The ringing of the doorbell interrupted those thoughts, and Sasuke pulled back, looking annoyed then thoughtful.

"Ignore them," Naruto muttered, bothered that his warmth was gone.

Sasuke smirked down at him. "Nah, I've been expecting someone." He slid out of the tub, ignoring Naruto's suspicious look and drying himself off. "I'll meet you in the bedroom in a minute."

Naruto stuck his tongue out at the retreating back, and leaned against the wall. He could hear muffled sounds of Sasuke talking to someone at the door, and then walking back towards the bedroom. Alone. There was some slight relief at that; when the raven said he was expecting someone Naruto hadn't been quite sure what to think. The blond pulled himself out of the tub and found a towel, scrubbing droplets out of his hair before drying his body and wrapping it around his waist.

As he walked into the bedroom, he saw Sasuke on the cell phone. He looked exasperated. He glanced over at Naruto and then away. That was strange – had Sasuke been blushing? He noticed a box on the corner of the desk, next to a paper bag. Wondering if that was the item that Sasuke was so concerned about, he walked over to it. His foot gave out when he was almost there and he tripped, catching himself against the wood and knocking the box to the ground. Its contents scattered. Naruto stared down at them, dumbfounded.

"Um, Sasuke?" he finally said, looking up at the raven.

The other man turned back towards him, eyes widening as he took in the scene. He was blushing! Though, considering the items littering the floor, that might be expected.

Naruto raised an eyebrow in silent question, taking a step back.

The raven lifted his hands in supplication. "Naruto, wait! It's not what you think!"

The blond looked down critically. "Ok?"

Sasuke sighed, and knelt down, working to gather the items as quickly as possible. "I didn't have time today to pick up something, so I asked them to deliver it. This other stuff evidently some so-called anonymous person decided to add to the order."

Giggling, Naruto knelt down and helped Sasuke as he put the items back in the box. "So you didn't ask for, let's see," he glanced down at the small tube in his hands, "strawberry-flavored lube?"

"Idiot," the raven grumbled, "I don't even like sweets."

Naruto just chuckled, shaking his head in amazement at the impressive collection of sex toys and other accessories that the box had contained. "Vibrating butt plugs, glass dildos, snapping adjustable cock rings – are you sure that you just don't want me to know about your kinky side too early?"

The raven snorted, and then looked up, an evil gleam in his eyes. "Why, dobe, would you like to try it with the vibrating butt plug?" He leaned closer to the blond, chuckling as the other man dropped the toys in his hands like they were hot potatoes. Evidently it was Naruto's turn to blush.

"Bastard!" the blond growled, then suddenly shot forward and pulled the raven towards him for a hot kiss, nibbling at his bottom lip. Smirking, he let his hand wander down Sasuke's body, gently caressing the other man's length. "Why would I need a toy, when I have this right here?" he murmured. He smiled, feeling the other man grow against his hand.

Sasuke's hand slipped down to the blond's ass, tugging him closer. He moaned into the kiss as Naruto gently pumped his length, squeezing the tip.

"All I want inside me, Sasuke, is you," the blond said. He gave the raven another light kiss and then pulled back and winked before turning around to pick up the last of the toys.

"Tease," Sasuke said, swatting at the blond's ass.

Naruto chuckled. "Maybe, but you love it." He picked up a bottled that had rolled under the edge of the bed. He held it up for Sasuke to see, laughing. "Man, whoever it was must've been really ambitious to think we'd need an extra-large thing of lube! What is this thing, like two hundred and eighty milliliters?"

"Um, well."

Naruto blinked at the return of the blush to Sasuke's cheeks. "What?"

"That's, kinda, the thing I actually ordered in the first place?"

The blond looked at the bottle, then back to his lover, working things out in his head. Sasuke smirked and put the last of the toys in the box, shoving it under the desk. He turned and started to advance on an increasingly nervous blond, dark eyes narrowing in amused hunger.

"But Sasuke – you were thinking – planning – to use – all of this – what – mmph!"

Naruto suddenly found himself trapped against the side of the bed by a very hungry Sasuke, who proceeded to kiss him mercilessly, tongue plundering the other man's mouth as he snatched the bottle from a suddenly limp hand and tossed it up on the covers. The blond felt all rational thought leaving his head again as the raven's fingers worked their way down his body. He arched his back into the kiss as a hand slid around him, pressing into the small of his back and pulling him close. The other cupped his head, tilting it back to allow the raven access to his neck. The hand on his back slid lower, teasing, causing Naruto to imagine all of the things Sasuke would do to his poor, defenseless body that night. Suddenly, he found himself picked up from the floor and thrown onto the bed face-first. When he tried to push himself up he felt a very naked Sasuke on top of him, kissing his back, fingers sliding around to caress his chest.

"Relax, Naruto. Let me do this. Just relax and enjoy it."

The blond whimpered, clutching the covers, trembling as that hot mouth licked and kissed its way down the sensitive skin of his back, hands massaging his ass and making him squirm. He closed his eyes, wondering what in the world Sasuke planned to do to him next – then felt all questions exit his mind in reaction to just what the raven's mouth was doing to him right now.

**... . . . ... . . . ... . . . ... . . . ... . . . ... . . . ... . . . ... . . . ...**

**Review Responses!**

**5Angel - I am a meanie, but i'm a kawaii meanie, right? right? ^_^ Hopefully this was not too much hot and heavy for your palate, I thought the boys deserved some relief - and cuddling - and smex. So glad you enjoy it - really love your reviews and look forward to them!**

**Rizember - smut! smut! enjoy smut? more smut to come! hehehe... glad you're enjoying it. I'd imagine eel soup is good - I loooove eel sushi, its probably my second favorite type right after salmon sashimi - the eel is almost good enough to eat just as desert in and of itself. Oh, and the dinner is the next night... timeline, hopefully I didn't screw it up, was I think:  
****- Wednesday: First meeting, Club, Molestation  
- Thursday: Contract meeting, Dinner date, Molestation (our story thus far)  
- Friday: TBA, Fancy dinner w/Itachi etc, TBA ^_^  
.... and more to come after that! Oh and yeah... personally, I'm always skeptical of SakuraxKakashi, but for some reason, this time it just fit. **

**lament4death - thank you so much!! I'll think about Neji and Gaara... I'm still playing around with some long-term plot bunnies. ATM I only know that Gaara and co are American, but who knows how this will all play out!**

**UreshiiSoujo - hope you have enjoyed the rest of the story as well!! Glad I can keep you laughing - I have so much fun with these comedy bits.**

**Katsheswims - thanks! Yeah, sometimes alot of it is sexual - but sex is important in relationships :) **

**Afira - smut for you! and more smut to come, just because, well, you know, these guys really can't keep their hands off each other...**

**skyglazingMaro - because I have S tendancies, at least as an author!!! ^_^ I can't help but tease the ones I *heart*, but I do reward the ones I tease!!**

**PeanutTree - thanks!!! I love good smut when it comes naturally from the couple - one of the reasons I started this was because the ATW kids were too innocent to go here this quickly. Not these guys! And it is totally luuuurve :) But you know what they say, the course of true love and all that, especially with wicked evil older brothers lurking in the wings... (mwuhaha)**

**hollowsmile - no promises *sniff sniff* but we shall see if, in the end, true love conquers all!**

**AspergianStoryteller - hehe, I just couldn't help it. And it's crazy about the quote from top gun! I should probably work more quotes in there... hmm... we shall see :)**

**XxXJTDXxX - thank you!! I really enjoy it, and enjoy how things evolve. I hope you enjoy this chappie as well!**

**sakurananachan - awww, yeah :) they're both very fun to write. The relationship is still evolving, and its fun watching them get more relaxed with each other - we'll see about the parting thing!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character. But I'm totally admitting the defeat in my effort to keep Itachi in Hong Kong, I just have too much love for the bastard ^_^**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, language per usual, smut smut smut, smutty!Deidara**

**A/N: More smut :) though maybe a slightly different style - let me know what you think. And some plot, but plot is yummy too sometimes.**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^ **

**Review responses at the end.**

**.......................................................................**

"Ouch!"

Deidara looked up from the costume and chuckled at the sight of Sakura nursing her hurt finger. "If only your fans could see you now!" he said. "The mighty Sakura, brought low by a simple sewing needle."

"Shut up," Sakura said, sticking her tongue out at him. "I haven't worked with these fabrics in a while."

"Yeah, yeah, sure."

Sakura shook her head and bent back to her task. "I should probably keep in practice more. I spend too much time just designing, lately, it seems. I miss just making things."

"I thought you still made some of your own outfits?"

"Well, yeah, but even then there are some things I just don't use."

Deidara just nodded, concentrating on the garment in his own hands. They were sitting together in the back room of a theater. Sakura had agreed to come over and help the blond finish up with some of his preparations for his performance the next night.

"You're really serious about your work, you know that?"

"Eh?" he said, glancing up at the pinkette. "Well of course, it's my life."

"Oh? I thought your life was Itachi-sama," Sakura teased, pointing her needle at him and enjoying the resultant blush on the blond's cheeks.

"Well, yeah, but ya know, I'm my own person too." Deidara said, chuckling. "Besides, he'd really yell at me if I slacked off doing what I love. He'd say it shows lack of dedication or something."

"Would say? Or has said?"

"Well, yeah. It's – I think he knows it would be easy for me to get lost in him."

"So he wants to make sure you don't stop being your own person even if you're his person?"

"Something like that, yeah."

"Sounds like a great guy."

"Yeah." The blond was silent, biting his bottom lip as he looked down at the costume in his hands.

"You're quiet tonight."

"What? No, no, its fine." His laugh sounded slightly fake, even to him.

"Liar!"

"No, no, I'm not!"

"Then why are you acting so nervous? Is it because Itachi's coming home tomorrow?"

"No! Well yeah. Well no, it's just –"

"What?"

"It's the show."

"What?"

"It's a new show, yeah. And I think it might be a little controversial."

"Oh?"

"I guess I'm just worried about how everyone's going to react."

The pinkette finished her costume and put it down, crawling over to her friend and patting him on the head.

"Quit that!"

Sakura giggled and sat back, wrapping her arms around her knees.

"So, what does Itachi think of the show?" she said, watching her friend try to ignore her.

He mumbled something under his breath.

"What?"

"He doesn't know what it's about."

"What?"

"He doesn't know! It's just –" he broke off for a second, and sighed. "I don't really tell people what my shows are about beforehand."

"But you had to tell people something, right? Even if it's a one-man show?"

"Well, yeah, something for the publicity. But it's all vague. 'The Making of a Sword – and Explosive Look Back at Recent History' and all that type of stuff, yeah. Things no one gets until they see the show."

"Oh. That's why you have the model of Tokyo?"

"Yeah!" the blond said, jumping up and going over to the table holding pieces of the miniature model. "It's going to be really cool, but also, I don't know. Some people probably won't like it."

Sakura followed him. There was a photo for reference, taken from the direction of the bay. It was an old picture. "Do you think Itachi will like it?"

Deidara shrugged. "I don't know, yeah. Sometimes people just want to forget history. At least, the bad parts."

"The bad parts?"

"Yeah. But you know, it's like that song – it's how you survive that makes you into the person you are, or the people we are, ya know?"

"Yeah." She swatted the blond on the back. "Anyways, I think you're worrying too much. Itachi likes you for you, I'm sure he'll be fine with this."

"I hope so." The blond wiped his forehead and looked around. "Man, there's still so much to do. Sorry, princess, I don't know if I'll be able to take you around tomorrow."

"How awful of you! I mean, really!"

Deidara stuck his tongue out at her. She responded in kind, using her index finger to tug at the bottom of her eye. He had to laugh. "Where did you pick that up?"

"Oh, here and there," she replied, grinning.

"Brat!"

"Well, duh!" she said. "Oh hey, what if I just come over and help you set up tomorrow? I don't have any meetings. Besides, then I could go with you to pick Itachi up from the airport – if that's alright? I've been wanting to meet this mystery man."

Deidara looked at her suspiciously. "Don't give me that innocent look. Just what are you plotting?"

Sakura blinked at him. "Plotting? Moi? I'm hurt!"

"Yeah, I'm sure."

"Bah, I just am curious to get to know this Itachi person. I mean, he's the lover of one of my favorite friends, and Sasuke's brother, and Naruto – well."

"Ah. Yeah. Naruto."

They both looked over at the model for a few moments, thinking. Finally, the blond shook his head, saying, "And here we were worried that they wouldn't like each other the morning after."

"Yeah, doesn't seem to be the problem, right?"

"But it's still complicated."

"Yeah," the pinkette replied, tracing her fingertips along the photo of Tokyo before her. "Hey Deidara?"

"Yeah?"

"What's Itachi like? To his brother?"

Deidara blinked. How to answer – sadistic? Strict? Loving? Self-sacrificing? Harsh? "It's complicated."

"Oh?"

"But he loves him, and wants the best for him – it's just sometimes the methods he uses are a bit unconventional." Like dumping Sasuke out in the mountains so that he would learn survival skills (never mind that Itachi was trailing him the entire way home). Or forcing Sasuke to escort the daughters of their business clients to important social functions (it helped Sasuke gain exposure to the clientele, and the raven was smart enough to let the girls down easy without damaging relationships). Of course, there were some more sadistic moments – but Itachi was the type of guy who enjoyed being mean to those he loved. Deidara could definitely attest to that.

"Hmm." Sakura looked unconvinced. "Well, I guess Sasuke's used to it, but –"

"Worried about Naru-chan?"

The pinkette nodded. "I mean, he's not as fragile as he looks – he isn't! – but sometimes he gets vulnerable to things."

"Yeah." Deidara turned away and went back towards the costumes. "I can't promise you anything. Itachi can be a real bastard sometimes – I think half the reason Sasuke's last boyfriend broke up with him was because Itachi finally wore him down. But it isn't – I mean, he isn't a bad guy, yeah? He just expects a lot out of people. Especially if they're involved with his baby brother."

"I guess I can't fault that," Sakura replied, making a face. "If he's such a perfectionist then I wonder what he's going to think when he sees Naruto, though?"

Deidara chuckled. "Don't over-think it. Remember, he's tenacious! He's a fighter! He's – oh wait a sec, phone call."

The pinkette shook her head as the blond stepped away, clearly talking to Itachi. She perked up when he grinned and started laughing, poking him when he came back over. "What was all that about?"

"Nothing, nothing, just having a laugh. Oh yeah, and he said it'd be fine to meet with you before dinner tomorrow. Does that mean Naru-chan's going to have to be on his own all day?"

"Well, I suppose he could help out with this?"

Deidara looked shocked. "No way! Nobody gets to see my piece before it's put together?"

Sakura blinked at him. "So I'm nobody?"

"Well, except you, Sakura-chan!" the blond said, hugging her and rubbing her head. "You're special!"

"Special, right…"

"And! You know how to sew!"

. . .

Naruto was panting, gasping for breath. He couldn't help it. He really really couldn't. He kept trying to muffle the sounds with the bed sheets, but every time he did, Sasuke would just squeeze harder or turn his head to bite and it was all over. Seriously, he was done for, coming apart at the seams.

The raven had coaxed him into kneeling on the bed, ass high in the air, face and hands planted in the sheets. The blond felt incredibly exposed, even more so when Sasuke had pushed his legs apart and leaned back to enjoy the view, describing it in detail to his breathless, molestible little lover while opening up that way-too-big bottle of lube. Naruto had wanted to push up, but Sasuke's hand on the small of his back held him down. Not by force, really – though it was firm – but there was something about the mixture of that hand and the way Sasuke talked to him that made Naruto just want to sink down and give up every bit of control he had.

It was intoxicating. And that was before those lips had stopped talking and started doing other things.

Naruto couldn't believe that Sasuke already knew that his back was one of his weak spots. And when those lips kissed so gently below the raven's hand, then started to trail downward to the cheeks of the blond's ass – how could he help but respond?

And Sasuke seemed to love it, murmuring to not hold back, just feel. Naruto couldn't help but feel, especially when those hands spread him apart, exposing all of him to that mouth – and the mouth dove right in.

It was a secret that Naruto loved – absolutely loved – the feel of a tongue on his asshole. Squirming, licking, pushing – all of it – and then there was the sucking. That should be outlawed. He squirmed, and found his hips held in place by one of those strong hands. It was shocking when the blond felt the coolness of lube touch his cock in one teasing brush down the length of it, making him jerk back against the raven. He swore he could feel the smirk – but that was driven from his mind when his cock was engulfed in a wet, slippery hand that knew just how to stroke him, just how to twist around, just how to tighten right before he pushed into the fingers. And then there was the thumb of the other hand that came down below Sasuke's mouth, pushing against the perineum in rhythm with the mouth and the hand, all these sensations driving Naruto absolutely crazy.

And Sasuke wouldn't let him get off. He kept pulling him to the edge over and over, with that tongue and those hands, making him babble on in need and desire, pulling back and chuckling at the curses whenever Naruto got too close to the edge, ignoring Naruto's demands that the bastard just get it over with and fuck him already. Naruto was seriously losing it, losing all sense, held at this pinnacle of sensation and pleasure where the only thing in the world was the raven bastard behind him who was making him feel more incredibly amazing than he'd ever felt in his whole life until he was just reduced to sheer begging to be filled with Sasuke's cock.

After a while the raven slowed down, making Naruto cry out in need as the mouth moved to feather kisses over his cheek. The hand left his ass, though the one on his cock kept going. The blond vaguely registered the click of a cap before he felt the wet finger circling his hole. Naruto pressed back, trying to coax that finger inside, but it kept teasing him, retreating then pressing in, making the blond voice his complaints vocally before the raven relented and plunged inside. There was relief at finally having something within him – but really it only made the blond want more. As second followed soon after that, plunging in and out almost cruelly, making Naruto more and more wanton before the third pressed inside. Then Sasuke's lips started talking again.

"You wouldn't believe how amazing you look back here, Naruto. I should show it to you sometime. Sucking me in, taking me so easy. Just think how you're going to look when my cock is here doing this to you over and over even deeper than what you're feeling now."

The voice matched each thrust, teasing him, driving him deeper, higher, everywhere until all Naruto could do was say Sasuke's name over and over and over. Then the hands were gone and Sasuke was leaning over, pressing his chest against Naruto's back, reaching towards the bedside table while his cock slid back and forth over Naruto's crack. The blond kept trying to angle things to get that cock inside him but it was no use. Sasuke nipped at his neck then pulled back, ripping something open before pushing forwards again, thumb teasing against Naruto's hole before something far larger pressed against it.

Naruto groaned in relief, irritated at the hands on his hips that held him in place when he wanted nothing more than to take the entire thing and be fucked as fast as possible. But Sasuke was a total bastard, pressing in way too slowly, making Naruto feel every single second of being filled, of taking the raven's cock inside him, of being taken by Sasuke. In that instant, Naruto wanted to give everything to the raven. He couldn't help it. To be so helpless, so needy, so possessed – it was absolutely incredible.

Sasuke continued to move in and out slowly, even after he bottomed out on that first stroke. Naruto could feel the smirk against his neck when he begged the raven to move faster – and tightened up in response, pleased at the strangled noise Sasuke made. Turns out the bastard's self-control has its limits, after all. After a while, Sasuke gave in, letting one arm snake across the blond's chest to grip tight to Naruto's shoulder, pulling him back to set the rhythm as the other hand went back to the blond's neglected cock. The pace set was excruciating – faster than before, and the raven was harsh thrusting in – but so slow pulling out. Over and over and over. Naruto couldn't think. He was a total mix of pleasure and sensation. When Sasuke began to move faster, biting down on Naruto's shoulder, it only drove the sensation higher. They were both panting as they drove each other higher and higher, until Naruto couldn't help but fall headfirst into that mass of sensation in a blinding explosion of pure feeling.

Naruto collapsed onto the bed, feeling Sasuke gently lick the bite-mark he'd made before slowly withdrawing. Sasuke rolled off of him, throwing the condom away. Naruto rolled onto his side to look at his lover. Sasuke lay back down on his back, pulling Naruto to him and cradling him against his chest. The hands that had been so firm just a few moments before were now gentle, stroking against his skin, soothing the blond as he came down from their lovemaking.

Naruto felt totally relaxed. So safe, here in these arms. He snuggled closer to the raven, making small happy sounds, feeling the raven's chest rumble in quiet laughter. He pressed his ear against Sasuke, listening to his heartbeat. There were no thoughts, no words, just pure and simple happiness.

Sasuke's fingers came up to trace over Naruto's face, brushing his hair back. Naruto felt the fingers trace the marks on his cheek and stiffened slightly.

"What's wrong?" Sasuke asked.

Naruto just shook his head and closed his eyes, snuggling closer to the warmth. He let his leg drape over Sasuke's legs, wrapping himself around his lover.

"Hn." Sasuke let his fingers continue to trace over Naruto's face. The blond kissed his fingertips and smiled as they traced upwards to brush against his closed eyes. Naruto let his hand brush against the raven's chest, tracing the muscles under the skin. Sasuke chuckled as the blond's hand traced against his side.

"You're ticklish?"

"Maybe."

Naruto stored that information away for future use.

"Hey, Naruto."

"Hm?"

"I've been meaning to ask you – what's the story behind the scars on your cheeks? You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, I'm just curious."

"Oh," Naruto said, "That." He continued to trace over Sasuke's skin, losing his train of thought for a moment out of the sheer curiosity of exploring his lover. "Well, it's kind of a long story."

"We have time."

"Don't you have to go to work in the morning?"

The blond felt Sasuke shrug, then say, "It'll be fine. Might just decide to keep you up for a while, anyhow – unless you're already worn out."

Naruto chuckled. "Not quite." But right now, he was just enjoying this languid feeling, being able to press this close to Sasuke. Might as well tell the story, it was old news anyhow.

"Well, you see," he said, "When Sakura and I were younger, we weren't always the amazing fashion-designing duo you've seen before yourself today."

Sasuke snorted.

"Ah, to be honest, we had a hard time making other friends. The kids at our school were pretty cruel to Sakura, made up all kinds of nicknames and did stupid things to bully her. I didn't really get off lightly either. Everyone thought it was weird that my best friend was a girl. The teachers weren't much better – they always thought that since we were Asian, we should both be super amazing students and everything, but we weren't."

"Dead last, eh?"

"Hey!" Naruto said, pinching Sasuke lightly. "Well, maybe. I was pretty good in PE though. Anyways, we started getting into trouble, staying out late, getting involved in fights and stuff."

"Ah, you became Yankees?"

"Yankees? Um, no, we're from the south."

"Delinquents, I mean. That's what we call them."

"Ah, I see. Hey! Is that some sort of slur towards Americans?"

Sasuke chuckled. "Probably."

"Hmph. Anyways. Yeah, Sakura was pretty cool too. For a while she had her hair long and this one time, a guy came at her with a knife and tried using her long hair to pull her back, but Sakura just let him cut it off. She got it fixed later though. But anyways, yeah. Sakura was all into her cherry blossom stuff even then, and for some reason I've always had this liking for foxes, so people just started using those as nicknames."

"Foxy?"

"Yeah, something like that."

"Hn." Sasuke thought about it for a moment. "Suits you, I guess. Though you're way too honest to be a real fox."

"Hey! Maybe you just don't know my super secret hidden side yet!"

The raven snorted. "Doubtful," he said, squeezing Naruto close. "I've seen just about every side of you by now, you know." He kissed the top of the blonds head.

"Yeah, yeah, bastard." Naruto smiled against the raven's chest. "Well one day, we got in this fight, and the guys we were with got pissed. One of em jumped me later as I was going home, and well – um – decided to make me look more like a fox since everyone was always calling me that." He didn't add the other things that had happened, or how long he'd spent in the hospital after that. "A guy was passing by and saw, so luckily things didn't get too out of hand. After everything was all over, I got to be good friends with him, and he and his family are still some of our best friends."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. I'll have to let you meet him sometime. We didn't really have any trouble after that, the guy had somewhat of a reputation, and no one wanted to mess with his friends. Sakura started getting more interested in fashion, and it made us both realize we needed to turn our lives around, so in the end I guess you could say it's all good."

Sasuke tightened his arms around the blond. "It's not good."

Naruto shrugged.

"What happened to the guy who attacked you?"

"Eh, last I heard he was in some psych ward somewhere. Rumor is he has liver cancer or lung cancer or some shit, who knows."

"Hmph." Sasuke hugged him tighter. "I'd kill someone if they ever tried doing something like that to you again."

"Sasuke?" Naruto pushed up and looked down at the raven, shocked at the completely serious look on his face. After a moment, he smiled, and leaned over to give him a kiss. He slid over on to straddle the raven so he could look down into that face, brushing the hair back and kissing him again. "Heh. You'd think you like me or something."

"Idiot," Sasuke said, returning the kiss as he lightly embraced his lover. "No one should ever treat you like that."

Naruto smiled, pulling back, becoming more and more aware of the body beneath him. Especially the light blush that graced the raven's cheeks, and how those dark eyes were suddenly looking to the side instead of meeting his gaze.

"Besides," Sasuke said finally, in a quiet voice. "So what if I do like you?"

Naruto grinned, enjoying how the blush deepened further when Sasuke chanced a quick look at his reaction. "Well good! I'll have you know I happen to like you too!"

Sasuke snorted, and then gasped as Naruto rocked forward against him, turning their conversation in another direction.

Naruto lifted his eyebrow in challenge to the raven. "You aren't sleepy yet are you, bastard?"

The raven's hands slid down to Naruto's hips in answer, coaxing him to move again. Naruto obliged and leaned down to delve into the raven's mouth. The kiss wasn't a struggle for dominance; it was just two lovers opening to each other as their bodies moved in concert.

Naruto reached over to the bedside table to pick up a condom and the bottle of lube, smiling down at Sasuke as he sat back on the raven's legs. Sasuke hissed as Naruto palmed his cock, watching with darkened eyes as the blond pinched the tip of the condom before rolling it over the raven's length. His eyes closed in pleasure as Naruto pumped up and down with a lube-coated hand, pressing his ass back against the raven's groping hands. Naruto grinned and slid forward, lifting up and reaching around to position the raven at his entrance. He paused. Sasuke opened his eyes and took in the view. The expression on his face was priceless.

"You look amazing," Sasuke finally said, taking in a deep breath as Naruto lowered himself, taking in every inch of the raven's hard cock. It was a little tight, but he was still relaxed. He sat for a moment when the raven was balls deep inside him, then grinned and gave Sasuke a big thumbs-up.

Sasuke laughed, sending all sorts of interesting feeling through the blond's groin. "You're such an idiot," he said.

Naruto giggled, and then moved, enjoying the noise Sasuke made in response. "Maybe," he said, "but you're the one fucking an idiot."

Sasuke shook his head. "That doesn't make any … uuuungh."

Naruto just kept moving, his hands splayed out on the raven's chest, arching his back at the sensations running through him. Sasuke's hands were wandering his body, caressing, urging, letting Naruto set the pace for this. Naruto opened his eyes to watch Sasuke's face, all the different expressions no one else got to see. He moved his hips, testing out the angles, watching for Sasuke's responses, groaning when he found an angle that was just perfect.

It was softer and sweeter than the time before. He still ached a bit inside, was still a little sore from all their earlier activities, but somehow that ache only added to the intimacy. Sasuke's face was so serious. He knew his was probably the same. He felt the raven was open to him, like the connection between them was even stronger than just their physical bond.

He leaned back, held up by Sasuke's hands, moving faster. The sensations were overwhelming. He saw Sasuke's eyes watch hungrily as he let his hands trace down to his erection, amazed by the look of desire in those black eyes. Sasuke started moving more on his own, thrusting upwards in a way that made Naruto give short little cries of pleasure. Even though he was the one who had initiated things this time, he felt that control slipping away. It didn't matter though. Sasuke was there, Sasuke was holding him, Sasuke would catch him. Even if the pleasure made him melt, they were together. Intertwined and connected, pushing each other higher and higher until they both reached their peak and exploded, breathless, into light and darkness.

**.....................................................**

**Review Responses**

**AspergianStoryteller - i dunno, when thick enough glass is pretty durable. **

**hollowsmile - maybe.... maybe deidara... maybe someone completely different! (ok, probably not, but... will have to see!)**

**Afira - thanks!! and even more smut after this, too.... what can I say, they're kinda rabbity atm**

**5Angel - whee!!!! I like being evil though. hope this continues to continue the high!**

**Katsheswims - hehe....mwuhaha... i can't let you know that yet. **

**.Luvah - ^_^ not so much of a cliffhanger this time, unfortunately - and the toys will probably come later. I think right now they're just enjoying each other's body way too much to think about adding anything**

**Rizember - yep! pure molestation :) and cuddling, and love! glad you like so much lady :)**

**sakurananachan - because i'm evil :) hope this chappie helps feed you, miss fangirlyness**

**iloveme5895 - even more sex :)**

**PeanutTree - hehe :) as to who the others are... mmm, we'll see. dunno if they're anyone important, though, at this point... mayybe. Someone from Naru's past will probably show up at one point though, but not anytime soon...**

**Syrenn - more for you :) and more to come!**

**School is starting, yay, so we'll see how often I update - but much love to all you readers! ty so much!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character. But I'm totally admitting the defeat in my effort to keep Itachi in Hong Kong, I just have too much love for the bastard ^_^**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, language per usual, smut, and some disturbing elements in the back story that involve a minor (nothing icky graphic though, just hints)**

**A/N: SOO terribly sorry for taking what, almost a year to update? College trumps writing fiction :( especially when it involves much too much reading and writing. I plan on continuing this on a more regular basis now that I have some free time, however - I hope that the new stuff is of the same caliber as the old, please let me know if there are any inconsistencies within the story. This is where I'd planned to take it way back when (some was even written then), and I do have a plan on where it's going in the future :) **

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^**

**.............................................................................................................**

Sasuke was having the most amazing dream. Everything about it was so real. The feel of his lover's chest beneath his hands, the press of heat between them as they spooned together on sweaty sheets, the smell coming off his skin, and most of all the feeling of warmth and heat and softness that he was plunging into over and over. He could even hear the voice of his lover calling his name, slightly scratchy, slightly high, edges blurred by sleep. It was the most delicious dream he could remember, and he'd had quite a few.

Gradually, gradually, thrust after thrust he started to rise out of sleep and slip into reality – reality that only brought the elements of his dream into sharper focus, as he realized that moaning, writhing lover that he'd dreamed was in his arms actually was in his arms, calling out his name, making needy little sounds as they moved their hips together. He brushed his lips against his lover's neck, ignoring the few hairs that tickled his nose, moving his hand down to caress his lover's swollen erection. This was worth waking up to every morning.

Naruto bucked against him, reaching a hand back to grab the raven's ass and urge him on faster, arching his back. Sasuke complied, still hazy from sleep but rushing towards a glorious conclusion. The blond cried out louder and tensed as he hit his climax, pushing Sasuke over the edge. Partway through he woke up enough to realize fully what was going on and pulled out, his release spattering the skin of Naruto's ass. He let his hand trail back, caressing the baby-soft skin, spreading cum around almost as if marking the blond as his own. He hadn't meant to go in without protection – but there was something deeply satisfying about knowing a part of him was still inside Naruto. It was like, down deep under any civilized façade he was able to put forth, there was this core of him that just desired to possess and own and have. And even better, it seemed like there was a part of Naruto that was more than willing to be taken in just that manner.

He pulled the blond towards him, pushing him down onto his back and hovering above. Naruto looked amazing. His blond hair was damp from sweat, cheeks and lips flushed red, eyes still hazy from sleep. He looked incredibly well fucked. A lazy smirk crossed the raven's lips.

"I could just eat you up, Naru-kun," he said.

"Mmm, morning to you too, bastard," Naruto said, bringing a hand up to brush the hair back from Sasuke's forehead.

Sasuke smiled and leaned down into a kiss, reveling in the feel of Naruto's soft lips and the way his fingers ran through the raven's dark hair. He trailed kisses over to the blond's ear, blowing in it lightly. The blond tightened his fingers in response.

"Oh, sorry about –"

The blond shrugged. "No big deal. We're both safe, right?"

"Right."

"And it's not like either of us are sleeping around…"

Sasuke smiled at the note of worry that the blond tried to mask. "Definitely not."

The raven nuzzled against his lover's neck, trying to ignore the unasked questions crowding in his head. It was scary how serious his feelings had become for the blond in such a short period of time. He tried to ignore the fact that in just a couple of days, Naruto would be going back to America – it just seemed unreal. He couldn't remember when he'd wanted anything more than having this man in his arms every morning. He had this confidence that things would work out in the end – that he'd do anything in his power to have things work out. The thought that the blond might not feel the same way, or that things might stand in their way, or that he wouldn't win – these thoughts didn't even dare step foot in his mind, because there was no way – no way he could ever let that happen.

He pulled back to look down at the blond once again, just to reassure himself that the man in his arms was no dream. Naruto's emotions were so open and honest on his face it made Sasuke's heart skip a beat. Here, in these arms, he was home.

Sasuke glanced over at the clock and sighed. "Work," he said, reluctantly sliding off of his lover and padding over to the closet to pick out a set of clothes. He felt Naruto's gaze on him. "What's your schedule like today, do you know?"

"Mmm, I'll have to check my cell phone. Don't think we really had anything planned, other than the dinner tonight. Oh, and Deidara's show after that."

Sasuke nodded. He couldn't help the smirk that crossed his face when Naruto winced before sitting up in bed.

"Bastard," Naruto said, scowling at him.

Sasuke just chuckled. "Stay there, I'll grab your phone." He walked to the entryway and ran through the blond's jean pockets, returning to the bedroom and tossing the phone to the blond lazing on the bed. "You're more than welcome to stay here as long as you want. The door will lock itself after you."

"Thanks," the blond said, flipping through his messages. "Looks like Sakura's going to be busy with Deidara all day anyhow, so I have time for myself."

"Hope you don't get lonely."

Naruto yawned, tossing the phone down onto the bed and snuggling back into the covers. "Nah, I'll just catch up on some much needed rest and take a long bath or something. Your tub is pretty amazing."

"I like it."

Naruto nodded sleepily, eyes closing again as the raven went to go take his morning shower. Sasuke hummed softly to himself as he finished, drying himself off and going to the kitchen to fix some breakfast. It didn't take him long to decide to treat the blond to breakfast in bed. After all, he was the reason Naruto was so exhausted in the first place – wouldn't do for him to lose all of his strength.

Naruto's smile when the raven sat down on the bed was more than enough reward. He sat up, eyeing the breakfast with a resigned sigh, and took the offered cup of tea while rubbing sleep out of his eyes. They ate together in semi-silence, Sasuke checking out the morning paper while they ate. Every so often, he glanced over at the blond, watching him eat. He really was like a kid sometimes, with that pure enjoyment of even simple things like food. It was endearing.

After they finished, Sasuke gathered the dishes to take them into the kitchen. He hid a smile at the yawn that the blond tried to muffle, leaning over to ruffle his lover's hair before leaving the room. He had to admit to himself that he took no little satisfaction in the knowledge that he was the one who caused Naruto to be so tired.

. . .

Naruto lay back on the bed and dozed, listening as Sasuke took the dishes back to the kitchen. His body ached all over, but it was a delicious feeling, the feeling of being thoroughly fucked mixed with the feeling of being thoroughly spoiled. A part of him, some lazy self-centered part, wanted this treatment to never end. Not that he would ever be satisfied with just this – being taken, taken care of, pampered, every need met (except ramen, but that was another issue…) – but it was nice to indulge in it just a bit. The thought of a day without any expectations made him very happy.

He could hear Sasuke getting ready in the bathroom as he mused. It was nice. He turned his head and watched as Sasuke came back into the room, dressing neatly and checking himself out in the mirror.

"You look great," Naruto called out encouragingly.

Sasuke glanced over and gave him a small smile. He finished tying his tie and came over, leaning down to give Naruto a brief kiss. The blond lifted his hand and ran fingers through the raven's hair, marveling at the softness. He was seriously tempted to pull off the tie, undo all the careful work that had just been done. But he could be patient. He wasn't sure his body could take much more this morning anyhow.

"You'll be ok, right? Call me if you need anything," Sasuke asked, sneaking one more kiss.

"I'll be fine," Naruto said. His eyes tracked Sasuke's form as he left the room, wondering if he would look back at the last minute. He didn't. Naruto pouted slightly, but then thought about the fact that he was being left unguarded in the raven's private domicile. At that, he smiled, turning and snuggling back into the pillows for a short nap.

. . .

Itachi stared out the plane window at the buildings of Hong Kong. Outwardly he was calm; inwardly he was having the old debate with himself about whether or not it was worth it to fly first class instead of just purchasing a jet. They could have afforded it without any issues, and it was annoying to have to deal with the mass of other passengers – but a private jet seemed almost too extravagant, especially when he'd rather invest his money in other things. Besides, he figured that his blond lover would either berate him for the indulgence or borrow the jet for extended stays overseas, both of which the raven would rather avoid. There was no telling either way.

Deidara had spent the better part of his youth in extreme poverty, and knew all too well about how money could be used to help those in similar situations. Every so often Itachi would find out that Uchiha Corp, due to the blond's influence on its employees, was involved in ventures to help alleviate the conditions of those in unfortunate circumstances. Although Itachi didn't consider himself a humanitarian, it was hard to complain too much. Especially when his people were able to find a way to turn a profit, and Deidara could be so expressive of his appreciation.

At other times, Deidara could look to all the world like an obsessive and self-indulgent consumer – but in reality he was extremely savvy in his purchases. Itachi had no problem allowing this indulgence, though he preferred it when those purchases did not take Deidara away from him too often. He was careful never to wrap the chains around the blond too tightly, however – not out of fear he would ever fly away, but because he hated the listless mood his lover sank into when he couldn't express himself. He knew the blond was his. There was no need to press the issue.

He could still remember the first time he had seen Deidara, and it wasn't too far from where he was sitting now. His great-uncle Madara had brought him over to Hong Kong Island for an "educational" experience when he was 14. Itachi had snuck out one evening while Madara negotiated with some rather questionable characters. He had skulked around in the even more questionable neighborhood they were visiting. A normal person wouldn't've gone out on those streets at night, especially not alone. But Itachi had never been normal.

Truth be told, he hadn't actually been alone that night, either. Although he had been trained in a range of martial arts since he was little, one of his father's stipulations for overseas trips had been two bodyguards. Itachi figured that if they couldn't keep up with him, then they weren't worth the money they were being paid. He'd gone through a few of them before finding the current pair who didn't mind so much that their client could (for the most part) take care of himself. One even encouraged Itachi's behavior, seeming to feel that the sharper his instincts were honed about people following him, the better. They usually just stayed back and watched, making sure that any situation the raven got into didn't get out of hand.

Itachi hadn't been looking for trouble that night, he'd just been curious. When he spied the blond in the second-story window of a building in a dingy alley, that curiosity had been piqued. At first, he'd almost thought it was a girl, because of the long hair and graceful movements. He'd crouched on a balcony opposite the building, watching as the figure stared intently at something being created by a pair of pale white hands. When the blond set the object down on the windowsill, Itachi had seen that it was an intricately crafted paper flower. He was startled when the figure looked up and right at him across the way. He'd known he hadn't made a sound.

The boy looked young, with grey eyes that betrayed nothing – no shock or concern, nothing more than recognition of Itachi's presence. He could see that the blond was definitely a boy, but one of absolute beauty. The beauty was marred by dirt and an ugly bruise on the right cheek. He could also see the collar locked around the pale thin neck. He figured that the blond was probably a year or two younger than him, though it was hard to tell.

He had heard about child trafficking before – with his great-uncle, one heard about quite a few questionable practices – but had never actually encountered it. From what he'd heard, most of the boys, sold or kidnapped from poor families, were trained as pickpockets and thieves. This boy didn't look like a pickpocket. He definitely didn't look like someone from one of the indigent farming families in the countryside on the mainland, either. But given the predominant business in their current neighborhood, he could hazard a guess at just what job the boy was expected to perform.

Even from the beginning, he knew, his predominant motivation for drawing closer to the boy wasn't out of pity, or concern. There was no sense of wanting to right the injustice that was obviously happening on a regular basis in the room where the boy was being held. There was, one could say, a certain amount of protectiveness that rose within him in those first few moments – but driving that protectiveness was desire. Desire to have. To claim. And Itachi was used to getting what he wanted.

He'd heard the door in the room open, and watched as the boy spun around, knocking the flower off the windowsill and onto the ledge outside. Itachi scampered silently over to the ledge and peered inside; watching as the boy sullenly went over to stand before the two men who had entered the room. The raven didn't catch all of the conversation – one man was obviously saying something about a ghost and high quality, manhandling the boy and pulling the thin robe he wore open to expose him to the other man, highlighting the merchandise with a kerosene lamp he held. The other man looked drunk and not just a little violent. For some reason, the two started to argue over price, and the blond was caught in the middle. He looked like he wanted to back away, but was held by the rope attached to his collar.

When things really did get violent, they escalated so quickly that Itachi could never quite remember exactly what had happened. Somehow, the lamp was shattered, splashing oil over the back of the boy's robe and lighting it on fire. Itachi had jumped inside the room at that point, grabbing the boy and covering him with his own body to put the fire out, ignoring the pain on his chest. His bodyguards were in the room right after him, putting themselves between Itachi and the two men. When it was finished, the potential customer lay on the floor in a pool of his own blood. The boy's pimp was cowering in front of a pistol held by one bodyguard, while the other bodyguard was on the phone to Madara.

Itachi had been worried that'd he'd been too late; the body beneath him was so still. When he lifted up, he could see ugly burns that covered the left side of the boy's back. He was relieved to see that it still rose and fell in silent breath. He would never forget the look on the boy's face when he'd brushed the blond hair back behind the boy's ear – the sheer hatred within the grey eyes as they looked over at the man cowering against the far wall. It was like no one else in the room even existed.

When Madara had arrived to assess the situation, he'd found his grand-nephew still hovering protectively around the blond, ignoring the burns on his own chest. The two Uchiha's had locked gazes for a moment. Not a word was exchanged. Once he saw the seriousness of his grand-nephew's intent, Madara had just given Itachi a measured nod and turned to the pimp, offering him $200 to buy the boy. Seeing as how that was the best offer currently available to him – especially considering that his merchandise was now damaged goods – the pimp accepted.

The boy didn't speak a word to them as they traveled back to their hotel. He didn't cry out as the burns on his back were treated. For a while Itachi wondered if he could speak at all (a question that he would come to consider mildly ironic a few years down the line). The raven had put up with having his own wounds treated only as long as he got to stay within sight of his new acquisition, mildly at a loss of how to proceed.

Madara hadn't yelled or berated him for the trouble he'd gotten himself into. That, Itachi had known, would come later at the hands of his father. His great-uncle just went back to his business after making sure that the bodyguards would stay close in case the blond decided to suddenly go feral.

The silence continued throughout the length of their stay in Hong Kong. Itachi had sullenly left the blond with a bodyguard the few times when Madara insisted that he participate in certain intercultural exchanges – the "educational" opportunities that were the reason behind his involvement in the trip. Afterwards he would go back to the room where the blond was in bed convalescing. The grey eyes watched his every move, narrowing whenever he got too close, seeming to be waiting for the moment when the raven would make his move. For the most part, Itachi just sat in a chair and looked back, content to wait.

When they traveled back to Japan, Itachi's mother had immediately taken the blond under her wing, shooing Itachi away. He still watched, but from a distance. He saw the boy's guarded expression slowly relax into a tentative trust of the cheerful, bubbly woman over the course of those first few weeks. He saw the bruises fade, and the boy's thin frame and pale skin gain a healthy look, though Deidara always remained slender. He heard from his mother about the first time that Deidara spoke, mildly jealous that it wasn't to him – but pleased to finally know the boy's name. It took a long time for the blond to relax whenever the raven entered the room. It was like the boy had an instinctive knowledge that Itachi's actions were not merely out of kindness – but slowly, surely, his patience was rewarded, and he gained the blond's friendship.

The flamboyance of the personality that emerged from the quiet shell was surprising, but to Itachi it spoke of a certain courage. He was proud of Deidara as he found his voice, keeping the long blond hair even in the face of derisive comments from his classmates and teachers. Part of the courage probably came from knowing that the raven was always there to crack down on anyone who went too far – but most of it was just part of who Deidara was, and his fiery spirit that not even all the atrocities he'd endured in his youth could put out.

Deidara had stood behind him at his parents' funeral a couple years later after they died in a plane crash. By that time Itachi was experienced enough to take over the company with only minimal complaints from the board of directors. He'd done it while finishing high school and going to college. Deidara had gone to the same college as him a year after that, though for a few months or so the blond had moved out to live on his own. Itachi hadn't minded. He had a confidence that the threads that bound the blond to him were strong enough that they would never snap, even if Deidara felt the need to test his independence a bit.

In some ways, it was good – Itachi had known that inside himself was an overwhelming desire to possess the blond so completely no one else would even be able to look at him, but he also knew that expressing that possessiveness would most likely either destroy the blond or those silken threads that bound them together. So he bided his time, and kept tabs on Deidara's movements, trusting that in the long run the blond would be back.

Deidara had come back. It wasn't some sappy romantic reunion or dramatic high-tension encounter. It was more like that the expectation that had lain between both of them since the moment they first laid eyes on each other was finally accepted by the blond. All the desire and possessiveness that Deidara knew lay inside the raven – even if it was never spoken out loud – were things that he finally decided to embrace rather than resist. And so, their relationship began in earnest. And they never looked back.

Itachi felt lucky, if truth be told. He'd had confidence – but holding back that long had been difficult. The only reason he'd been able to do it was because he'd known the blond was worth it. He didn't regret it in the least. While other people had to worry about tenuous relationships and petty jealousies, he had a lover that he owned, completely, voluntarily – and nothing would ever break that bond.

He smiled to himself as the plane's engines started and they finally got going down the runway. A few short hours and he would be home. He was looking forward to meeting the woman who had enticed his blond away so many times, and especially looking forward to meeting the man who'd attracted his baby brother. He was even curious to watch Deidara's new show. Most of all though, he was looking forward to the time after the show, when everyone else was gone and it was just him and his blond, who was still an absolute beauty even after all these years, even with his scars. He'd promised Deidara that he'd do whatever he wanted to him once they were alone – and he had quite a few interesting ideas on just what that would entail. Deidara had never been wrong about the raven's predatory instincts – and the blond would always be his most delicious, delectable, and wonderfully willing prey.

**...................................**

**Sorry to start back with such a heavy chapter, it won't stay that way :) I just wanted to tell ItaDei's backstory, at least in brief. *heart* Itachi, *heart* Dei... anyone else curious as to what Naruto is going to do with himself all alone in Sasuke's apartment? *cackles* hopefully you wont have to wait tooo terribly long to find out.**

**Ja ne!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character. But I'm totally admitting the defeat in my effort to keep Itachi in Hong Kong, I just have too much love for the bastard ^_^**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, language per usual, smut, kinkyness, enjoyment of self, etc**

**A/N: Some plot, some smut, some citrusy chocolate goodness (Am I the only one who absolutely loves oranges and dark chocolate together?) Have to credit Dorkchic for the inspiration for part of this... go go reviewers and commenters :)**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^**

**.............................................................................................................**

In downtown Tokyo, another raven had just sighed his fiftieth sigh of the morning.

Not that Shikamaru was counting, mind you. At least on purpose. Theoretically, he was ignoring the broody bastard, though inside he was mildly amused because he hadn't seen this side of Sasuke since they were in high school. It probably meant he was thinking too much and letting his pessimistic nature convince him of something. When they were younger, it normally had to do with his family, especially after he was forced to live with Itachi.

He'd been living with his mother's parents for several years – even before the plane crash. At some point, however, it was decided that he needed to be living back in the main Uchiha household. Itachi hadn't been opposed to the idea, but he hadn't exactly been the most supportive of older brothers, and his head at that time had been tied up with Deidara issues. A rebellious baby brother was only a blip on the radar when the love of his life was threatening to slip out of his grasp.

For Sasuke, the new home environment – and new school, even if his best friend had transferred with him – had been quite unsettling. His grandparent's house had been strongly traditional, the new one had very little of that structure. He reacted by testing his boundaries. Considering that Itachi had been setting his own boundaries since he was eight, what Sasuke found was that there really weren't very many, as long as he kept his grades up in school.

This, Shikamaru had to admit, had led to some very interesting times. He'd been Sasuke's shadow at the time as well as his best friend, so was with him for all the new experiences. It also led to some new friendships – the man sitting outside Sasuke's office wouldn't be there if not for a few of those times. All too often though, even in the best times, there was this edge to Sasuke. An edge that seemed to imply an emptiness that none of the risks taken could satisfy.

Things came to a head after Deidara came home. It was the first time Itachi and Sasuke had really fought over anything. Sasuke would never admit that deep down he was just jealous of the blond – not in any brother-complex way, but just for the attention that Itachi had always been too busy before to give to anyone. The younger raven hadn't ever really understood his brother's relationship with Deidara; he'd already been living with his grandparents when Dei was brought into the family. All he knew from them was that they were vaguely disapproving, and a part of him didn't understand why this new kid got to spend so much time with his mother when he could barely ever see her. Now that she was gone, to have the blond take over the little time he had with the one member of his family he had left made him into a very nasty teenage boy.

Itachi didn't let things stay out of control very long. He started to snap in place the boundaries that, if truth be told, Sasuke probably needed at that time. He also spent more time with his baby brother, even if it was time mainly spent being a major hardass. Sasuke refocused on school and became much more stable. He'd ended up graduating at the top of their class in college. Once they got into the business world, the raven had proved he had an Uchiha's instinct for business, rising to his current position on his own merits rather than just family connections. He still had his moments of rebellion. Shikamaru doubted that would ever change. But what did change was that edge of emptiness. For the first time in a long time, the raven found things to be honestly happy about, even if the happiness wasn't overwhelming. It was enough.

So when Sasuke was going back to his old tricks, Shikamaru was mildly concerned. He figured it had something to do with the American who had entered the raven's life in a whirlwind a few days prior. The brunet had a detailed report on said blond in his hands at the moment, ordered after it became clear that Naruto wasn't just a potential client. A couple of details flagged Shika's attention – Naruto evidently had made some very interesting friends in his youth. Nothing major though. The brunet was more concerned about how Sasuke would act in the next few days. He wasn't Sasuke's shadow anymore though, so it wouldn't involve him too much – though he still kept tabs on the raven for his dad, the man who did the day to day management of the information network Shika now oversaw. If there was one thing you could say about Sasuke though, it was that he was unpredictable – which only made life interesting.

Both of the room's occupants were startled when the raven's phone made a soft ding. Sasuke scowled at the object disturbing his important train of thought, then did something completely unexpected when he flipped it open. He blushed. Shikamaru blinked, and then turned away, smirking. Maybe Sasuke wasn't the only unpredictable one in this budding relationship.

. . .

_An hour and a half earlier…_

Naruto turned over in the bed and yawned, grimacing. His ass hurt. He reached back to scratch it and scrunched up his nose at the substance that had dried on his skin. He grunted, feeling all the aftereffects of the previous night hit him at once. Sighing, he rolled to the edge of the bed. He supposed it was time to get up.

First things first – time to get clean. He stepped into the bathroom, glancing at the showerhead and blushing lightly. He decided to avoid that for the moment. Instead, he pulled out the short plastic stool and filled the washing bowl up with water, using it to pour water over himself a few times. There was a wide floor-to-ceiling mirror opposite the tub. He washed himself off with soap and a washcloth, mesmerized by the sight of his own body. Not that he was a narcissist. Not really. But – well, let's just say he could see what Sasuke saw in him. He grinned. And, he could see quite well the reminders of what Sasuke had done to him.

"Bastard sure does like to mark his territory," Naruto muttered, tracing his fingers over a pattern of blotches spread between his left nipple and his navel. He checked his hips for bruises. None were showing up – hopefully a good soak would clear away the ache, at least a bit. He set the tub to fill up with nice hot water then really got down to business scrubbing himself clean, making sure all the soap was rinsed off before slipping into the tub.

Which was awesome. Deep, and big – big enough for two people comfortably, something to keep in mind in the future. He leaned back, letting hands trace idly over his skin, unconsciously pressing against the marks Sasuke had made in the hours since he'd known him.

It was crazy to think that the time could still be counted in hours. He sobered a bit at that, looking up at the ceiling. He didn't even really know what Sasuke was normally like in relationships, or if Sasuke wanted a long-term relationship. He made a face. In a way, what he should be thinking about first wasn't what the raven wanted, but what he wanted. Did he want this to have a future?

The answer to that question wasn't nearly as hard as it should have been. He did.

Not in a way that would hurt anyone that was precious to him – but whatever this was, what he had with Sasuke, it was important enough that he was willing to do what it took to make it work, even if it took a while. He'd just have to find time to talk with Sakura about it – well, after he'd felt out the raven a bit more. Or felt him up. Or been felt up himself. Anything worked. He grinned, squeezing himself gently as he thought about it, wondering what Sasuke would think if he could see him right now. That led to other wicked thoughts, which led to him draining the bathtub and drying off with a towel before wrapping the towel around himself and going back into the bedroom.

He started searching the covers for his phone, frowning when it couldn't be found. Must have knocked it off while sleeping. He bent over, crawling along the floor looking for where it could've bounced to. Finally he spied it over next to the desk. Aha!

Naruto pounced, and then glanced over at the box haphazardly shoved under the desk. He blinked, and then smirked, his wicked thoughts suddenly escalating. Grabbing the box he bounded over to the bed and upended it on the sheets. He hadn't really had the chance to look at the toys in detail the night before. Some were definitely out of his league. He examined a few of the dildos and butt plugs before putting them away – his ass was still sore, and he'd meant what he said last night. He hadn't ever really been one to play with toys by himself before he met Sasuke, and now that he knew the real thing, he doubted any imitation would do the trick.

He was a little curious about the anal beads. He had this image of surprising Sasuke, letting him find them inside him some night. Or somehow force the raven to do nothing but watch while he pulled them out of himself – that idea had possibilities. He'd have to keep it in mind for later.

He paused for a moment over a package with a couple of tubes inside, one brown and one pink. He couldn't quite tell what they were supposed to be. He was tempted to open up the package, but then another one caught his eye and he laid that one to the side.

Naruto had always been curious about nipple clamps. He wasn't sure if it was something he'd actually like, or just a fantasy. He hadn't ever had the chance to try. Hesitantly, he opened up the package, looking critically at the gold-colored chain and the two rubber-tipped clamps on either side. He licked his lips, and glanced from his nipples to the chain and back again. The gold would look pretty killer against his skin. Absently, the blond raised his fingertips to his right nipple and started playing with it. He pinched, gradually increasing the pressure, wincing slightly. There was this weird fuzzy grey area between pleasurable sensation and pain, especially when he twisted his fingers slightly. It was still sore from the night before, but that only made him think of the man whose hands and mouth had caused that soreness.

He brought the clamp up and squeezed it open, wondering what the little screw on the side was for. Slowly, he let the clamp pinch his nub, not quite letting go all the way. He wasn't that stupid. As he let it tighten, the pain increased, testing his tolerance. He started to breathe more quickly. He let the thought flit through his mind of taking a picture of this and sending it to the raven, but then panicked a bit, pinching the clamp back open and pulling it off. He cursed as the blood rushed back into the pinched flesh in a way that was much more painful than just simply the clamp. He threw the chain across the bed and glared at it slightly, a blush still warming his cheeks.

Better not send that picture to Sasuke. He wasn't sure he wanted to give him any encouragement in that area. He thought about throwing the chain away, but changed his mind, picking it up and letting it slip back into the box. If Sasuke wanted to use it, would he let him? Naruto thought back to the night before, where he'd been splayed out on this very bed, totally at the raven's mercy. The blond shivered slightly, glancing down at the proof of his reaction. Yes, yes he supposed he would. And he'd love it while it happened.

But that didn't mean he needed to instigate things like that. Even just plain vanilla sex between the two of them was hot enough to more than satisfy him. Though he didn't mind chocolate once in a while…. Maybe.

That thought made him glance back down at the two tubes in the package next to him. He grinned as he put two and two together, noticing the kana spelling out "choko" along the brown tube. He opened up the package and took out the tube, twisting the lid off and looking at the soft brush at the end. There was a dial at the other end and he turned it, watching as brown fluid pushed out through the bristles. He touched the tip of his tongue to the bristles experimentally, and was rewarded with a bitter-sweet taste. Interesting, but what was it for?

He thought a minute about the possibilities, and then grinned, putting the other objects back in the box and heading back into the bathroom with his camera. He wasn't quite sure what it had been designed to be used for, but he had a few interesting ideas about how he was going to use it. He just hoped his hands would be steady enough to pull it off, and that the raven he wanted to seduce had a full appreciation of his efforts.

. . .

Sasuke stared down at the screen of his phone at the picture mail he had just received. He tried to ignore the blood he felt flowing into his cheeks and then down to other parts of his body. The picture in and of itself wasn't horribly inappropriate. No face. No body parts that would have turned the picture into some sort of pornography (though it definitely gave him ideas about some other sort of pictures he would like on his phone). Just a bare patch of naked tanned skin between a belly button and two delectable little nipples, a patch of skin immediately identifiable to him because it was covered in marks that he had made the night before. It also was covered in some sort of dark brown substance that spelled out two little words.

"Still hungry?"

It didn't help that the dot on the question mark was the blond's navel, and that Sasuke's mouth had started to water at the thought of what lay below the edge of the picture. He started to punch in the dobe's number and call him then remembered that he wasn't alone in his office. Shikamaru was doing an excellent job of ignoring him. Still, Sasuke wasn't about to hold the following conversation within earshot of anybody. He got up from the desk and went over to his executive bathroom, closing the door and not caring if Shika could correctly predict just what he was about to do. He had more important things on his mind. Like yelling at a certain blond idiot. He pressed the send button and waited for the idiot to pick up, barely letting him pick up before starting in.

"What the fuck, idiot? You know I'm at work! 'Still Hungry?'"

The soft mischievous chuckle on the other end of the line sent tremors down Sasuke's back. His hand tightened around the phone, wishing he could reach through it and occupy that mouth with something a bit more productive.

"Well, it is almost lunchtime, Sasuke," was the blond's innocent-sounding reply.

Sasuke just growled. He checked his watch. There was no way that he'd have time to go home and take care of Naruto's smart mouth properly. He cursed under his breath, remembering that there was no way he'd even be able to meet Naruto for lunch that day here in the office, because he had a meeting that Neji would be coming to get him for in fifteen minutes. Where had the morning gone?

"Sorry, Naruto," he said. "I have plans for lunch, a business meeting."

He heard the blond on the other end of the line sigh disappointedly, and then say, "That's just too bad." He heard some other sounds coming from the blond's end as well. Sounds that made him wonder if the blond's delectable mouth was being put to uses other than just breathing and talking.

"What are you doing?" he asked, curiosity getting the better of him.

The blond took a moment to answer. "Well," he said, pausing just a moment, "since you aren't here to clean this off of me, I guess I'll have to do it myself."

The raven blinked. "This?"

"Yeah, I was looking around in the box of toys this morning. Some interesting things in there. One of them was this chocolate body pen."

Sasuke had to sit down at the thought of Naruto and that box of toys. He normally wasn't into a whole lot of kinky stuff, but – he was a guy, right? And the possibilities were just – very interesting. So much so that all he could say in reply was a half-hearted, "But I don't like sweets."

Naruto chuckled again, and Sasuke glanced down at his watch, estimating the time he had remaining. Making an executive decision, he reached down and unbuttoned his pants. He slipped his hand inside, palming his growing erection.

"Well, that's too bad, Sasuke," the blond teased, audibly smacking his lips. "It's not too sweet anyhow, more like dark chocolate – but if you don't like it, maybe I could use it on you sometime?"

Sasuke just grunted, causing Naruto to say "Sasuke?" in a way that was just a little less sure than his previous comments. The raven smirked.

"I'm right here baby. Just thinking about your hot little body, the one in that truly delicious picture. Where are you, anyhow?"

"Oh," came the breathless reply, "I'm in your bed, just lying here, naked."

Sasuke grinned. He stroked himself a bit rougher, picturing his blond laid out on his bed, squirming and needy for him. "You do know that you're going to be paying for this little stunt later tonight, don't you?"

The giggle this time was just a bit more strained.

"But for now," Sasuke said, smirking into the phone, "I want you to do exactly what I say."

Sasuke lowered his voice just a little, pulling all the stops, intentionally driving the other man nuts as he spoke to him, urging him on, giving him hints of all the lovely ways he planned to get him back for his naughtiness this morning. He could hear the blond on the other end complying with all of his orders. He loved the breathless little moans that Naruto made as the blond brought himself closer and closer to orgasm, and matched pace with him, driving them both closer to the edge.

He was finally rewarded with the sound of the blond chanting his name almost breathlessly, punctuated by a keening cry of pleasure that sent the raven over the edge himself, barely keeping enough sense to make sure that his clothes weren't stained with the evidence.

He could hear Neji entering the office outside the door, and frowned as he glanced back down at the watch. The blond on the other end mumbled a bit, then said, "Thank you, S'ske" The raven smiled, words of affection catching in his throat. All he said was, "You too. See you tonight, dobe."

"Looking forward to it, bastard."

They hung up and Sasuke glanced in the mirror, making himself presentable and slipping the phone into his pocket before turning and walking back out the door.

**...................................**

**Hope you enjoyed that little taste of what is to come :) Oh yeah, and someone pointed out to me that I'd messed up Shika's name in previous chapters - really appreciate that. I had this vague suspicion when I did a google search for him using the wrong spelling, but - ack! If you notice anything else along those lines, please don't hesitate to let me know.**

**Imarriedmalfoy - thanks so much! Hope to keep you entertained :)**

**Afira - thanks :) I have a lot built up in my mind for this ItaDei coupling, maybe I'll put together a prequal or something once I finish this lovely thing. Much love to you too!**

**AspergianStoryteller - yeah, though it'll be fun to test those bonds at least just a bit... torturing them (especially Sasuke) is always fun ^_^ *hides behind Itachi***


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character. But I'm totally admitting the defeat in my effort to keep Itachi in Hong Kong, I just have too much love for the bastard ^_^**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, language per usual, smut, kinkyness, pervy old men, etc.**

**A/N: Plot found here! Oh, and to be nice, a bit of slutty!Deidara - I mean, wouldn't you be too if you had your Itachi back?**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^**

**.............................................................................................................**

Naruto leaned back, smirking. Seduction complete. He didn't even care that he had to wash up again – that had been so worth it. He hummed as he made his way back to the bathroom, scrubbing himself clean before going out to see what other types of mischief he could get into.

First he raided Sasuke's closets. The bastard did have pretty good taste in clothes, after all. He really needed to branch out in his color choices though – maybe some greens, or reds? Naruto was pretty sure the raven couldn't pull off orange – more's the pity – but he'd probably look pretty good in some red.

Next, he went back into the living room to take a better look around. He'd already seen most of it, but had probably missed one or two interesting things. He went over to the bookshelf on the far wall and chuckled, pulling out his grandfather's book and flipping through it. The blond wondered if he could learn Kanji using these books – he knew a couple by heart, since Jiraiya had forced him to proofread them as punishment for "running away" – i.e., going to college on the west coast.

Speaking of, he wondered how the old coot was doing. He checked his watch – he was pretty sure it wasn't too late over there – and went back into the bedroom to grab his phone, dialing his grandfather's phone number.

No one picked up.

He frowned, dialing the number again, but all he got was the answering machine. Not that there was any reason to panic. His grandfather could take care of himself – kind of. Maybe he was just over at a friend's house. Or had gone to the movies. Or was peeking inside the ladies changing rooms at the mall. There was no telling, really.

Naruto grumbled a bit, wondering why the old coot had to make him worry on his trip, and then pulled up the phone number of one of his friends who normally kept an eye on things for him, one of the friends who'd been transplanted from their hometown after Sakura designs really took off.

"Kiba?" he asked, after someone answered the phone.

"Sorry – Naruto is that you? It's Ino."

"Blondie? What are you doing answering the phone at Dogbreath's place? Don't tell me you guys are dating now?"

He smirked as he heard the sigh of exasperation on the other end. "Idiot. As if. No, I'm just dogsitting for a few days."

"A few days? Where's Kiba?"

"He didn't tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

"Oh. Maybe he wanted it to be a surprise."

Naruto frowned. "What?"

"Well – damn. If he wanted it to be a surprise, I probably shouldn't tell you. He got to fly over to Tokyo for the weekend."

"Really?"

"Yeah. You remember that Shino guy from college?"

The blond racked his brains, trying to remember. "Um, the really weird one, who was always really cold or something?"

"Yeah, that's him. Well, you remember how he used to be a keyboardist in a band with that Shin guy that Sai started dating our senior year?"

"Um. Sure? I think. I kinda remember the guy." He'd been OK friends with Sai in college, though he and Sakura tended to butt heads pretty often. It was an artist thing, he supposed. He and Sai had flirted around every so often, but it was never anything serious. When the raven had met Shin, most of the flirting had stopped.

"Well, evidently they got pulled into some sort of rock band over there in Japan. Shin's the drummer and Shino does keyboards. They're doing some sort of big concert thing this Saturday, and Shino invited Kiba to come over and see it. You remember they became really good friends that summer after we graduated."

"Yeah, I remember." He hadn't ever really understood, but for some reason the two got along pretty well. He supposed it was because they both liked outdoor stuff. "So Kiba just up and came over to Tokyo without letting me know?"

"Um – I guess so?"

"Figures." Kiba could be pretty impulsive sometimes. Then Naruto remembered the reason he'd called in the first place. "So if Kiba's out of town, who's keeping an eye on my grandfather?"

"Hmm. I don't have a clue. I saw him yesterday, though, and he looked… fine."

"Fine?"

"Well, energetic."

"Energetic? He's like 74, what does he have to be energetic about?"

"Well, he was running – um."

"Again?"

"Yeah. I'm sure they won't press charges, though. And besides, the cops have your number if anything happens, right?"

Naruto signed, not in the least bit reassured. "Yeah, I suppose."

"See? It will be fine! If I get the chance, I'll check on him tomorrow, though I have to work the late shift."

"Thanks. I'd appreciate it."

"No problem. See ya when you get back."

"Later."

He hung up the phone, rolling his eyes at Jiraiya's antics, and then traveled down to the music section, letting his eyes travel up and down the possible selections. The other day he'd been in the mood for something quiet. Now, he felt more in the mood for something a wee bit harder.

Hmm. Sasuke had Bon Jovi? Naruto glanced at the stereo system and grinned, deciding that its sound quality needed a bit of a test. And that the situation also called for a good helping of air guitar.

This was the root cause of the reason why the cleaning lady dropped her supplies in shock a few minutes later at the sight of an underwear-clad Naruto rocking out to "It's My Life" in Sasuke's living room, singing at the top of his lungs as he danced, with air guitar skills proudly on display for all to see.

. . .

_Meanwhile, in another land, possibly or probably very far away..._

The airline clerk watched, bored, as the passengers lined up for the evening flights. She scanned the lines for anything out of the ordinary – no potential tourists that she could see, mainly just tired families and tourists. Then she saw him.

The old man had crazy white hair, dark black wraparound sunglasses, and was wearing a brightly colored Hawaiian shirt. He carried a couple of big unwieldy bags and was gazing around lecherously at all the women in the terminal under 40. Sometimes 50. The clerk looked at the woman working next to her who shared her dismay, and they both turned towards their respective customers.

The customers in line that day had never had so quick a journey through the ticketing line. The two clerks working the desk processed their customers at record speed, each looking up every so often and counting parties so that she wouldn't be the one stuck with the potential horror story at the end of the line.

The man, noticing the multiple gazes of the young women, enjoyed the attention. It was nice to know that, even at his age, women were competing over him.

The first clerk thought she had the situation in the bag when she snagged the family of four right before the old man. She turned to smirk at her companion, and then noticed that the other woman was on the phone. And her customer didn't look too happy. Eyes widening in dismay, she turned back to the family in front of her, hoping for something complicated. She sighed as she realized that their paperwork was very straightforward, reluctantly dragging things out as long as possible and glaring at the clerk beside her who was still talking on the phone to customer service.

Finally, she had to send them on their way and wave the old man forward. She put on her most business-like demeanor and held out her hand for his paperwork. He kissed it, totally oblivious to the glare that she sent him.

"Paperwork?" she asked. He handed it over and she skimmed the ticket and ID.

"Name?"

"Jiraiya Goketsu."

"Nationality?"

"Duel citizen, America and Japan."

"Reason for travel?" she said, wanting to avoid the full version of the question.

"Hmm?"

Alas, it was not to be. She put on the most straight face she could find and asked, "Business or pleasure?"

He slid his sunglasses down his nose and looked at her, waggling his eyebrows and grinning widely. "Why, pleasure, of course."

Things just continued to go downhill from there.

. . .

Deidara watched as Sakura frowned down at her phone, trying a number again.

"Problems?" he asked.

She gave a hesitant little laugh. "Well, I got cut off on a call yesterday, and I'm just hoping the other person didn't misunderstand anything."

"Anything important?"

"Um. Probably not."

The blond pondered at the slightly guilty look on the pinkette's face, then shrugged internally. He was far too excited with his own matters to worry too much about whatever it was that she didn't want to talk about. He gazed out the car window as they drove to the airport, trying not to fidget as he went over everything in his head – again.

He and Sakura had worked through lunch that day, but finally everything was in order. Hopefully. They were finally in the limo on the way to pick up Itachi, a fact that made him excited on top of his nervousness. Part of him was wishing Sakura hadn't come along, though he knew that was terribly unfair. He just wanted to be with Itachi.

Itachi had always protected him, ever since they met. Not that he was always comfortable with that fact – for one thing, he had his pride as a man; for another, there was always the unspoken risk that that protection didn't extend to things Itachi did himself. That risk had never truly been made manifest, however – at least, never in a way that was truly dangerous.

He was taking a risk with this show. Granted, he took a risk with every show, but he always felt it beforehand, and the only thing that helped was Itachi. Of course, there was no one he was more worried about showing his work to than Itachi too – but the raven was always supportive. Even if they didn't always totally agree.

So he was jealous that he had to share his raven with someone else in the hours before the show, even with some of his favorite people. He would get over it.

He blinked, startled out of his thoughts by a sharp poke to his shoulder. Sakura grinned at him. "You're doing what I do before a show. Quit it. It'll be great."

He blinked, and then slowly smiled back at her. "You're right, yeah," he said. He forgot sometimes that even though Sakura was amazingly successful, she took risks with her art as well. Maybe not the same ones – but she knew how it felt.

They pulled up to the curb at the international terminal and the driver let them out. The excitement at seeing Itachi made everything else a blur as they went inside, checking the arrival board to make sure they were in the right place. Deidara frowned as he noticed that Itachi's flight had already arrived. Traffic had been atrocious. The blond looked around, trailing a slightly bewildered foreigner as he searched for his boyfriend. Then he suddenly turned around, feeling like he was being watched, and locked eyes with his lover who stood only a few feet away.

"Itachi," he said softly, smiling. They didn't hug or hold hands – it was far to public – but they didn't need to. Just the sight of the raven set his mind at ease. So much so, in fact, that it took him a minute to respond to the insistent tugging at his elbow. He blinked down at Sakura, then looked back at Itachi, apologizing.

"Sorry, sorry yeah. Itachi, this is Sakura. Sakura, Itachi," the blond said, making sure to stick to English.

The raven smirked at his beloved, and then nodded politely to the pinkette. "A pleasure to meet you," he said, bowing slightly.

"Likewise," she said, bowing back. The two eyed each other up for a moment, and then turned to the blond expectantly.

"Hmm? Oh. The car's outside."

Itachi nodded. "Hoshigaki will bring the luggage when it's finished. I'd rather not wait," he said, looking down at his watch. "I believe we have dinner plans?"

"Yeah." Deidara turned and led the way out of the airport, fully conscious of the raven walking a few steps behind. He waved the car forward when they reached the curb.

"How are you enjoying your stay in Japan?" Itachi said, waiting as the driver came around to open the door for them.

"It's been a very pleasant experience, thank you." Sakura answered, smiling as Itachi waved her in before them. The three of them got settled in the back of the limo, Deidara sitting by Itachi across from Sakura. He was uncharacteristically quiet as the two continued talking, content to simply listen. As they started back into the city he leaned closer to the raven, resting his head against the other man's shoulder. Itachi put his arm around the blond, stroking his hair as he spoke with Sakura. It was just what he needed.

He smiled as he listened to them. Itachi was asking Sakura about fashion, and had several interesting questions. Dei was surprised; he didn't realize how much the raven actually listened to him when he babbled on about the pinkette's clothes. He also made some good suggestions about things that might help the brand become established in Japan. The blond was sure at least part of those came from the business, but he didn't mind. It drove home how much Itachi was willing to do to keep him happy. He knew there was more to it than that; the brand really was a good investment. However, he also knew that if he hadn't've been interested, Itachi would never have picked it up.

The hand stroking his hair slipped further down as the raven pulled the blond onto his lap, leaning down to murmur a greeting into his ear. Deidara glanced over and saw that Sakura was on the phone, looking out the window. The blond snuggled closer to Itachi, clutching his shirt. Suddenly he was very thankful that he had a friend as good as Sakura, even if he did have to share Itachi's attention with her. He always felt like such a ball of nerves before a show, and not having Itachi around the few days prior made things even worse, even if he had been able to spend that time with two of his favorite people. Sakura glanced back at them as she finished her call, giving him a quick smile before responding to Itachi's next question in their conversation. He leaned closer to the raven, inhaling his scent, before letting the gentle rocking motion of his lover's arms carry him into a light sleep.

. . .

Naruto hung up the phone with Sakura, looking glumly around his hotel room. How was he supposed to know that Sasuke's housekeeper would be coming by that afternoon? Even worse was the fact that it was that Neji guy who talked to him on the phone and explained what was going on after the housekeeper chased him into the raven's bedroom, wielding her broom like a sword and threatening to call the cops and report him for breaking and entering. He had no idea how he'd ever be able to look the other guy in the face. It was one thing for Sasuke to get a glimpse of his weird side, but he didn't really want the raven's assistant to think he was crazy.

The housekeeper had apologized after everything was said and done, but he could tell the look that was in her eyes whenever she watched him. The one that said "crazy American, you should be ashamed for showing such a display to a woman of my age!" even though Neji had mentioned that the woman was a bit off herself. It seemed as though she was an old family retainer who had a soft spot for Sasuke. He wondered if the woman had guessed exactly why he felt just fine being in the raven's apartment in barely a scrap of clothing.

He grumbled, berating himself while trying to figure out what he was going to wear that evening. Sakura had said she would be up soon. He settled on a white suit, white jacket, orange tie. The tie actually had a pattern of tiny flames picked out in a subtle checkered pattern, with gradients of color from deep orange to light yellow. There was a yellow spiral sun pattern picked out near the bottom of the tie that could only be seen when someone was close. The tie was one of his favorites. He suddenly had this image of Sasuke's fingers pausing for a moment at his neck before they slowly pulled off the tie. He had this random thought wondering if he should go with a tie that wasn't one of his favorites, but ignored it. He wanted to look his best, and this outfit was pretty popular with most of the people who knew him.

He put on the shirt and buttoned it up, looking critically at his neck. Hopefully Sakura could do something about it like she had the other day. They should have time. He shrugged out of the shirt and looked at the rest of the damage, realizing that she'd probably get to see everything that wasn't covered by his undershirt.

He slipped on the pants and the undershirt, walking over to Sakura's room and pulling out the dress she had requested. It was a red dress with traditional Chinese collar and short sleeves that hit her a bit above the ankle. There was a slit on one side, and instead of the traditional Chinese print, the fabric was embroidered with stylized cherry tree branches picked out in black, with pink and white blossoms. The pink matched her hair. He wasn't quite sure how she could pull off red, but somehow it worked. Maybe it was her eyes. He laid it on her bed, but decided she could pick out her own underwear.

Some things even a best friend shouldn't have to do.

. . .

Itachi sighed deeply as the woman left the limo to go up to her hotel room and get ready for dinner. He liked her, she was competent and straightforward, and definitely knew what she was doing in the fashion department. She'd promised it wouldn't take long before she and Naruto were back down and ready for dinner – a promise he was slightly amazed at, considering most women he knew took an hour putting on makeup just to go shopping. Not that he minded the wait.

He leaned his head over and nuzzled the soft blond locks of his lover, squeezing him awake. Smiling at the soft murmurs and little stretching movements of a waking Deidara, he raised his hand and lifted the blond's chin so that he could kiss him properly hello. The other man was totally pliant to his kiss, allowing him plunder his mouth and responding eagerly, twining his arms around the raven's neck. Itachi knew that this mood of Deidara's wouldn't last long, it rarely did. He knew that soon his lover would be back to his flamboyant, wisecracking self. Still, it was nice to know that his absence had made such a deep impression on the blond, even though he'd had guests around this week to distract him. Itachi was happy to take advantage of the situation while it was here, just as much as he loved it when he had to work through layers of stubbornness to achieve the blond's total surrender. This was the honest side of his lover – something they both knew, even when Dei teased him or played hard to get. Because that's all it was – playing. Underneath all those layers, every time, was this insatiable, needy little blond who was more than willing to do anything he wanted. And all Itachi wanted was everything.

Itachi let his hands drift down over his lover's body, making Deidara squirm on his lap, trying to get closer to him. He raised one to cup the back of the blond's head, turning it and running kisses over to his ear. He was regretful that they didn't have the time to do things properly, but there would be time for that later. He let his hands run down Deidara's sides, pulling his hips closer and grinding their erections together before molesting the blond's ass. He knew all the right buttons to push, all the right words to murmur in his lover's ear, all the right things to do to turn Deidara into a quivering, panting, breathless moaning body in his arms. Those moans soon turned to pleading words as the blond pulled back a bit and looked up at him with lust-clouded eyes. Itachi loved that look.

"Please," Deidara said. The raven wanted to memorize that voice, that look. He knew what the blond wanted. He wished he could accommodate, and knew that it was slightly cruel to push the other man this far, but didn't really care. He'd take care of him properly later.

"Please what, pet?"

"Please, please fuck me 'tachi," the blond replied, still gazing up at him with those big grey eyes while wiggling his ass back against the raven's hands, squirming as fingers teased him, avoiding the very place he wanted to be touched most deeply.

The raven chuckled slightly, pleased at the flash of anger in the depths of those eyes. "Now Dei, you know if I did that properly, you wouldn't be able to do your show tonight."

The blond pouted, glancing away for a moment to try and come to terms with the situation. The rational part of his mind was finally waking up. He looked back at the raven through lowered lashes, pure seduction as he rolled his hips to make sure he had Itachi's attention. "Well then," he said, leaning forward to kiss the raven's lips softly, "let me, please?"

Itachi smiled against the kiss, letting his hands trace up and down the blond's back. "Let you, hmm? I might could do that – but Sakura and Naruto could be back down at any time, do you think you can do things properly before they're here?"

Deidara made a slight noise of displeasure at him questioning his skill. Itachi just smirked, kissing his lover again before gently pushing him down so that he knelt on the floor of the limo between Itachi's legs. Itachi narrowed his eyes as he took in another view that he would never get tired of – the satisfied smile on Deidara's face as he unzipped the raven's pants and took out his hardened cock. He licked his lips teasingly before Itachi urged him closer, letting his hands run through those blond locks as Deidara opened his mouth and sucked in his cock like a starving man.

**. . . ... . . . ... . . . ... . . . ... . . .**

**And there you have it! At least, until next time... same bat-time, same bat-channel! Oh, and if anyone notices any plot holes, lemme know - getting back into this thing I sometimes feel just a little bit paranoid.**

**Review Responses:**

**Rizember - tanku! I hope at some point I hit at least an 8.5, maybe 8.6? ^_^**

**PeanutTree - thanks! I like Shika, he has such a balanced perspective on the possibly just a little bit unbalanced younger Uchiha :P At some point, though, I think he'll need something to totally throw him off his game. Sometime. **


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character. **

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, language per usual, smut, kinkyness, bj, etc.**

**A/N: Starts of boldly here :) since *some unnamed person* accused me of leaving y'all with a cliffie... hope you enjoy!**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^**

**...**

The all-time best way to drive nervous thoughts from Deidara's head was to fill it with a mouthful of Itachi's cock. Of course, there were other ways to drive all rational thought from his mind – but sometimes all he really needed was to go back to basics by performing this simple act of giving pure pleasure to the man that he loved. He'd lost count of the times he'd done it years ago. That didn't make it boring. That didn't make it routine. That didn't change the fact that Itachi was the most delicious, savory thing he'd ever tasted, hands down – and that it was only when he was in an incredibly snitty mood that he ever even considered turning down the chance to have him.

He often craved skin to skin contact with Itachi, even in simple ways. Even when he was angry with the raven – which did occasionally happen, even the best of couples have moments where they aren't in sync – he still found it soothing to touch him. Going down was a step beyond that, this interesting moment in time when the elements of dominance and submission between them were mixed. It was hard not to be vulnerable when your most sensitive bits were in one of the most dangerous bits of another person, after all. Especially when it was used to make you absolutely lose control – and as much as Itachi knew about how to push his buttons, Dei knew just how to use his mouth to drive the raven to the edge of distraction as well.

The tension was high between them at the moment, with everything else going on. Itachi made sure of that, using his voice to keep Deidara on the edge of distraction himself. He tried sneaking a hand down to help relieve some of the pressure on his cock while he worked the raven's cock over, sucking him in and massaging the soft-hard skin with his tongue. Itachi was having none of that though, and made him keep his hands on the raven's thighs.

He stepped it up by forcing Deidara to spread his legs as he knelt, pushing them further apart with his feet. The blond was cursing him silently as he bobbed his head up and down, feeling the loss of control even more as Itachi grabbed up his wrists with one hand and started using the other to force his head up and down at the raven's rhythm. Dei had, for a while, succeeded in coming back from the edge of arousal that his lover had driven him to earlier – but it was coming back fast. That wasn't what he wanted, not this time.

So, he started in with some tricks of his own. Itachi might control how he moved his mouth right now, be he had full control of what went on inside of it. And he knew just how to press, when to suck, and when to roll his tongue to achieve the best results. Results that included fewer words from the raven, and more grunts and little noises of pleasure. He glanced upwards and was rewarded by the shine of pleasure in his lover's eyes, and the small smirk that flitted across his lips. The hand on his head slipped to the raven's thighs and the blonds hands were set back down as Itachi relaxed his need to have total control over the situation. It was just what Deidara was waiting for.

He focused all of his attention on raising the level of intensity for the raven, sucking harder and using his hands on Itachi's thighs for leverage. He linked his fingers with his lovers, squeezing as the noise from Itachi grew in volume as he drew closer to the edge. Deidara loved this moment, when absolute service to his lover was twined around having absolute control. He urged Itachi closer and closer, abandoning complex techniques at the end for pure stimulation, feeling the muscles in the raven's legs tense up as the other man gasped and lifted just a bit before making a strangled cry as Deidara's mouth was flooded with the reward of a job well done.

The blond sucked gently as Itachi came down, moving his head to rest on the other's thigh after a hand urged him over and stroked blond hair away from his face. He smirked up at the raven, visibly licking his lips. Itachi chuckled, looking at him warmly. After a minute, he pulled the blond up to sit beside him, kissing him deeply. These were the moments when all pretenses were stripped away, and it was enough for both of them to simply have the other in his arms.

Itachi groped Dei's ass playfully, totally unapologetic about his lover's lack of satisfaction. It annoyed the blond a bit, but not overly much. He let his head rest on the others shoulder, watching as the raven tucked himself back into his pants. Itachi then flipped on the air conditioner and pulled the blond away from him a bit, checking for any overt signs of the act they had just performed. Deidara smiled, accepting this bit of fastidiousness from his lover. Appearances were important to Itachi – Dei figured it was an Uchiha thing. Not that he minded. There were parts of Itachi no one got to see but him, and that was worth any amount of fussing. Soon, there were no traces of sex to be found – though Sakura probably had a good idea of what was going on in the limo after she left. She would never say anything.

They had a few minutes to spend cuddling before there was a polite knock on the car door. Deidara chuckled and gave Itachi a triumphant look before leaning over to open the door for his friends. He noticed that Naruto looked unusually nervous, and wondered if the thought of meeting Itachi was really that scary. The barely-repressed smirk on Sakura's face indicated that there might be more to this situation than just that, however.

Deidara introduced the blond, watching curiously as a blush appeared on Naruto's cheeks and spread to his neck, exposing the presence of some very well-applied makeup. Dei grinned, concluding that whatever other things were bothering the blond, coming face to face with the big brother of the guy he'd been fucking the past few days definitely had a certain effect. He debated as to whether or not to tease the other man further, but his plans were ruined when Itachi opened the conversation with some polite questions. One couldn't exactly say that the questions put the blond at ease right away, but he did start to calm down, especially when the older raven skillfully directed things towards business topics rather than anything personal.

It allowed Naruto to explore topics he was very comfortable with, and his natural charm started to shine as he self-confidently explained his answers to Itachi. Deidara was once again impressed with the brilliance of his beloved, especially as the raven pulled the other occupants into the conversation. By the time they pulled up in front of the Uchiha's office building, there was barely a trace left of their earlier tension.

That changed as the Sasuke and Shikamaru entered the limo. Naruto blushed again and seemed to be expecting some sort of reaction from Sasuke, but the it appeared that the younger raven was dealing with his own nervousness. There was an awkward moment when they realized that since Sakura and Naruto were already sitting at the back, Sasuke wouldn't be sitting next to the younger blond – as it turned out the younger raven actually ended up on the far side of everyone near the front of the limo, since Shika ignored everything troublesome and took the seat on the other side of Deidara. None of this went unnoticed by Itachi, he was sure.

As the limo pulled away from the curb and headed towards Shibuya, Deidara was struck by how different the atmosphere was that evening from how things had been just two days prior. Had it really only been two days since he and Sakura had plotted about getting the two younger men together? It seemed like longer. And there was less than two days left before the Americans were set to fly back to the states. He shared a look with Sakura, wondering if her thoughts in any way mirrored his own. He frowned, and felt the light press of Itachi's fingers on his shoulder. He glanced up at his lover. The older raven seemed to be completely involved with his conversation with Naruto. Deidara leaned against him slightly, smiling before turning to talk with Shikamaru. He trusted that Itachi would figure out the right thing to do, even in this potentially tricky situation. He was sure that everything would be just fine.

. . .

Sasuke knew that he looked perfectly composed. Sasuke knew this because he was an Uchiha, and Uchihas always looked perfectly composed, no matter what. They never betrayed their emotions, at least in public, and where he was now counted as public. So he knew that his façade was perfect and no one would have a clue about the turmoil of emotions that was, in fact, brewing just below that perfectly calm surface.

He knew something had happened that afternoon, because he'd caught the edge of the exchange between Shika and Neji after he came back from his meeting. He gathered from certain clues he picked up that, whatever had happened, it involved Naruto. He also knew it wasn't anything serious – because if it was, Shika would have dropped the subtle teasing and just told him straight out. But he had no clue exactly what had happened. Shikamaru could be terribly effective at acting like he didn't know a thing about what you were talking about, if he chose – which only made you feel like he was acting like you didn't know a thing about what you were talking about, either.

Neji, on the other hand, was an absolute master of turning a conversation away from anything he didn't want discussed. Sasuke supposed he could have just come right out and asked him what had happened, but that would have been impolite. He wasn't above being rude to the long-haired brunet, but he avoided it whenever possible. Any satisfaction to be had from forcing an answer was short-lived. Annoying the person who had full control over your daily schedule was a very bad idea.

Either one of his friends by themselves could be difficult to handle, but together they were impossible. Over the years, they'd developed this impenetrable teamwork that ensured the success of anything they set out to accomplish – even if it involved their boss. As a result, Sasuke came away from work that day feeling like he'd been managed, rather than managing his so-called employees. Sasuke would have sworn that the two were bigger gossips than any old ladies, and it didn't help that they had more dirt on him than anyone else in existence – except maybe Itachi.

He glanced over at his brother, who was talking with a rather animated Naruto. He narrowed his eyes. Naruto had only met his eyes once since he got in the limo, and that look had been short and slightly guilty. Sasuke really wanted to know what that was all about. He comforted himself with the thought that he was sure he'd be able to get it out of him later. That thought wasn't quite as comforting as it could have been, though. He frowned, noticing the nervous edge to the blond's energetic rambling. He hated exposing the other to his brother like this. He wanted to be next to him, reassure him that everything would be ok. It irked his protective nature just a bit to know that even slightly nervous, Naruto was handling himself just fine without Sasuke's protection. The younger raven ignored the possible contradictions in his nature and turned to look out the window to see where they were.

He waited for a break in Shikamaru and Deidara's conversation, and then asked the brunet, "Which restaurant are we going to again?"

"Usumura. We have reservations for a table on the terrace."

Sasuke nodded his approval, and then glanced over at his blond, managing to catch his eyes. They shared a glance, and the blond gave him a small smile before turning again to Itachi. Sasuke didn't smile – at least on the outside – but inside, he felt just a bit better. At least the two of them seemed to be getting along well. He watched his brother for a few moments, trying to gauge Itachi's thoughts about the blond. The problem was that Itachi could hold a pleasant conversation even while simultaneously buying your company out from under you, if he so desired.

So Sasuke looked at Deidara. His brother's blond wasn't nearly as good at concealing his emotions, even if technically he was listed on the Uchiha family register as their cousin. He knew Deidara was fond of his "little ball of sunshine". He trusted that the long-haired blond would have at least some negative reaction if he felt things weren't going well. Seeing how he was calm – suspiciously calm for just a few hours before a show – Sasuke decided to put off worrying about what Itachi felt about the blue-eyed blond.

Less reassuring was the question of how Itachi was feeling about Sasuke himself. The younger raven acknowledged that his performance that day had not been up to the standard expected by his elder brother, and had few doubts that he would miss hearing about it later. Normally, he would be tempted to tell Itachi to go fuck himself – after all, nothing had really suffered business-wise. He'd smoothed everything over with the Tsubasa executives over lunch, and finalized another couple of contracts in the afternoon. But now, he actually had something riding on the line with his brother. Itachi could, on occasion, make it very clear who was in charge in the company – and never had to state Sasuke's choice of what to do if he didn't like it.

He would have to play it cool if he wanted this to go well – especially since the things in play were things he actually wanted this time. The thought crossed his mind that he didn't know for sure what the blond wanted – but it was quickly forgotten as he turned his mind to the most challenging question of how to handle his brother so that everything went his way.

. . .

Sakura glanced down at her phone, checking the missed call log for the hundredth time that day. She figured it was a long shot – by this time it was pretty late in LA, and the person she wanted to talk to was most likely in bed. Hopefully, at least.

She smiled at the driver as he opened the limo door, politely helping her out onto the curb. Platform shoes probably hadn't been the best idea for the evening. She adjusted her dress slightly as she waited for the others to join her. Internally she was noting small issues that affected the dress's wearability so that they could be adjusted later. She caught Itachi looking at her and wondered if she'd been obvious about what she was doing. If so, he should appreciate the fact that she took her work very seriously. She had a feeling he probably would.

Following the men into the building, she mused that the elder raven was quite the enigma. He was pleasant enough, though she suspected he was one of those people who could talk to you for hours without ever truly revealing something about themselves. At the same time, she sensed that he truly did care for Dei. It wasn't anything he said - in truth, the two of them seemed to practically ignore each other in the conversation, each entertaining a different batch of people in the limo - but it was more in his actions. Things you wouldn't notice unless you were specifically looking for them. Sakura also felt like she'd clicked with Itachi earlier that day as they chatted about fashion, which was good because she had some ideas to run past him at some point before they left. She would to try and grab a few minutes alone with him later that evening to see if he was willing to possibly be her partner in crime.

Naruto drew her attention to the view outside the elevator as they rose into the air, chattering with his usual unquenchable excitement. She loved how he actually paid attention to his surroundings and was able to find beauty in those surroundings no matter what else was on his mind.

The view from their table at the restaurant was even more spectacular. The Uchiha's politely allowed Naruto, Shikamaru and her to sit on the side with the best view. She sat facing Itachi, and was pleased to see that Naruto could sit across from his raven. She'd felt funny during the ride when they'd had to be separated. While they waited for the first course, Shikamaru turned to her to talk about business.

"Haruno-sama - we've talked mainly about the logistics for the getting everything established over here, but not so much about the strategy for the launch. I wanted to put forth a few thoughts, if you don't mind?"

"Of course not," Sakura said.

He nodded, and the other occupants of the table leaned in a bit, listening. This was something that would affect most of them as well. "First off, I think we should try and time it so that it hits before the Tokyo Girls fashion show – it's a highly publicized event, and I think it could help get your name out there. Before that, though, it would be good to establish some brand recognition. Because of your reputation in America, there's already some of that, but we'll need to get buy-in from the pop culture here in Japan as well."

She nodded.

"I'm not sure how knowledgeable you are about the idol culture here in Japan, but I think it would be good to use it to our advantage in this situation. Your clothing line is known for its diversity. I would propose that we launch the advertising campaign with two different idols with two very different reputations so that we can attract a wide range of customers."

"I like that idea. I assume you had someone in mind?"

He nodded, pausing a moment as the waiter set the antipasto in front of them. Usumura was known for having a unique fusion of Japanese and Italian cuisine. Sakura joined in as they as they all said "Itadakemasu" before she took a bite. She was impressed – the food was as good as she had heard, and she appreciated the fact that someone – she assumed Sasuke's assistant – had remembered her offhand remark about wanting to try it out while she was in town.

After finishing a polite bite, Shikamaru continued.

"I have a couple of possibilities. One is a relatively new idol named Kin; she's the singer for a visual kei group called Hikyoku Kon'on. They're a relatively new group, up and coming. A couple of their members are actually American, which could help with the transition. She's pretty cutting edge in terms of the clothing she normally wears, but I think that would work to our advantage, especially if we play her off against the other idol I have in mind."

"Sounds interesting."

"The other idol is much more your traditional cute girl – her personality is much softer than Kin's. Her name is Hinata. Unfortunately she's out of town on tour at the moment, or I'd try to set up an introduction."

"I think I've heard of her."

"Maybe. She sings as well, though her stuff is in the singer-songwriter vein, more straight piano and voice. A couple of her songs have been used at the end of animes."

Sakura nodded, mildly puzzled at the smirk that crossed Sasuke's face at the mention of Hinata's name. She glanced over at the younger couple, noting that they were paying more attention to each other than the conversation she was having with Shikamaru, not that she could blame them.

"Hikyoku is having a concert in a club tomorrow night though, if you're interested. I realize it's your last night in town, and you might want to just relax, but –"

"No, I think that's a great idea," Sakura said, flashing a smile at the brunet. "Don't you Naruto?"

The blond turned to her and blinked a moment before smiling and saying, "Sure!" She knew he didn't have a clue about what he'd just agreed to, and smirked. He leaned over to her and whispered, "What's a great idea?"

The pinkette didn't miss the smirk on the elder raven's face at this remark, nor the momentary frown on the younger's when she mentioned the concert. For a second she almost felt bad, wondering if Sasuke had other things in mind for that night. Then she decided she'd let him have far too much time monopolizing her best friend, and it served him right if she chose to take the blond back for their last night together in Tokyo on this trip.

It didn't mean he couldn't come along too, if he wanted to. She figured he would. As the main course was served, Deidara jumped into the conversation about idols, sharing what he knew about the two different potential models for the brand. Even Itachi contributed something. As she ate the scrumptious food and joined in on the lively conversation, Sakura took a moment now and then to truly appreciate the view of the city spread out below. As they all paused in their eating to watch a glorious sunset, she smiled. Some of the people sitting with her were good friends, and the others had the potential to be as well. She just hoped that everything over the next few days worked out as planned.

****

...

sparksfire-51 - thanks so much! and... well... reality must come to us all... :P

Rizember - you make me laugh my ass off. you're absolutely awesome. hope this chapter was up to your standards :) I'd say sorry about the cliffy but, well... some of us enjoy teasing the ones we love! but in the end, we always aim to satisfy...

KyouyaxCloud - ty for your reviews! Uchiha's are totally hax with de blondies :)

Afria - I am, I am! Trying to make up for lost time, too... lol really, trying to make it through the weekend. I almost feel like I'm writing for 24. It really is amazing how much little stuff can go on in a couple of days, especially from multiple peoples POV.

melissaaax3 - thank you for your awesome review! I heart cool Sakura too. I read somewhere that she's the quintessential fangirl, and that part of the reason she annoys us is that she reminds us of ourselves. Personally, I think sometimes she's just a whiny bitch - but she can also be amazingly cool :) even if she is sometimes too clever for her own good...

Enjoy people! I stayed up way too late finishing this off, so if there are issues, please let me know... for some reason my flash player isn't working on here even though it's working other places *sadface* which makes it a teensy bit more difficult to upload things, so I'm being lazy on tripple checking things. Let me know of any issues! Ja ne!

A/N - flash player is working again, but no hits counted *sniffle* so reviews would make me extra happy. We authors like to know if we're actually satisfying our audience, ya know? If not, one might as well just imagine the whole thing in ones head... and without the feedback, we never know how to make things better!


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character.**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, language per usual, kinkyness, etc.**

**A/N: Yeah, sorry, no real smut :P I spoil you guys with it enough already! ow, ow, ok fine, I'll get back to it later... but hopefully you'll enjoy the other interactions. Life isn't all about sex you know... right? It's also about cookies...**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^ ... how about more smut for more reviews? mwuhahaha :) Enjoy!**

**...**

Naruto was finally starting to feel a little relaxed. Itachi still made him nervous – with the stories Dei had told about him, that wasn't surprising, plus the man was just plain scary – but he was very polite. The blond still felt this presence of impending doom, but that was the other raven's fault.

He assumed that Sasuke didn't yet know about the trouble he'd gotten into this afternoon – yet being the operative word. That Nara guy did. He'd caught the look the brunet gave him earlier. But Sasuke just looked confused and mildly irritated. Maybe a little constipated. Naruto chuckled internally at that thought, and then blanched at the single raised eyebrow of inquiry that Sasuke gave him. Putting on his most brilliant smile, Naruto turned towards Itachi and racked his brains for something charming to say, finally asking, "So, you guys have baseball here in Japan?"

A stunned silence met his question. He registered that he might have spoken just a little loudly, and that he just possibly might have interrupted their ongoing conversation. He ignored the muffled snort and "baka" coming from Sasuke's direction, choosing instead to hold his smile and act like half the table wasn't staring at him like he was an idiot.

Deidara finally came to his rescue, saying, "Why yes we do, Naru-chan, we have lots of sports."

Ok, so maybe that wasn't exactly a rescue, but it was something. And the elder blond was kind enough to follow up with, "We even have basketball. Itachi played basketball in high school, didn't you?"

The elder raven gave Naruto a look that made him quiver in fear over his continued acquaintance with the man's younger brother. Then Itachi relented, nodding gravely and saying, "Indeed."

Sakura stepped up to the plate and asked, "Did you play basketball in high school, Sasuke?"

The younger raven looked scandalized.

Shikamaru chuckled and said, "No, but we were both on the archery team."

"Oh?" Sakura said, turning towards him with interest. "Was it fun?"

"It had its…"

"Advantages," Sasuke concluded, giving the brunet his trademark smirk.

Naruto glanced suspiciously at the man across from him, suddenly wanting to know more about these so-called advantages. The raven looked at him mockingly and mouthed the word "Jealous?" making Naruto push out his bottom lip and turn to look out at the city skyline. He felt a foot tease his lower leg and looked back at the raven, catching the fondness in his eyes. He looked down at the table and smiled. Then he looked up with a challenge.

"So were you any good?"

Shikamaru coughed lightly before Sasuke had the chance to answer. The raven gave him a dirty look. Naruto decided right then and there that if their relationship did get to continue, he was going to take the time to become very good friends with the brunet.

Sasuke seemed to decide that modesty was the best answer in this situation, because he just looked down graciously and said, "I was not the best, and am still improving."

"So you still practice it?"

Sasuke's eyes lit up, and he nodded. "We have a range at the main house in Fukashima. I should –"

He stopped midsentence, and glanced at Itachi. Naruto was puzzled. The raven sighed, and looked out at the city before continuing. "I find it very calming."

"Oh." Naruto wasn't one to act like he knew what all was going on, so he just focused on finishing his meal. It was a delicious grilled chicken with delicately grilled potatoes and tomatoes, accented by colorful vegetables. It wasn't ramen – and he liked the food Sasuke had introduced him to the night before better – but it was still good.

The others continued on with their conversation for a few minutes. Deidara glanced at his watch and pushed back from the table. "I need to go get ready for the show; you all enjoy the rest of the meal!"

Naruto glanced over; watching as Itachi casually brushed his fingertips down the side of the other blond's wrist before standing up himself. "I'll walk you out."

Sakura chose that moment to go to the ladies room, and Shikimaru checked his phone and went over to the edge of the balcony to return a call. Suddenly, the two of them were alone.

Naruto smiled as he felt the raven's foot press against his, and leaned forward slightly. "What was that about? You should what?"

Sasuke just shook his head, a flash of sadness in his eyes before he smirked at the blond. "Nothing. I'll tell you later."

Naruto crinkled up his nose, frowning. "Bastard. You'd better."

"Oh really?" Sasuke countered. "Somehow I think you might have some things to tell me later as well?"

"Erm." Naruto blushed. "Maybe."

The raven just chuckled and caught his gaze before letting his black eyes shift, roaming down to take in the rest of the blond's body that was visible above the table. Naruto felt a thrill knowing that he was the object of that intense stare. The slight frown that developed on Sasuke's face made him nervous.

"You know Naruto," the raven said, "I'm not really one for orange."

The blond's mouth opened in outrage, but any comment he would have made was interrupted by the raven's next remark.

"But I like that tie. It looks good on you."

Flustered, Naruto blushed, trying to think of a good reply. His train of thought was interrupted by the return of the elder raven and Sakura, followed shortly by the brunet. Shikamaru begged off going to the show – evidently the call had been some important family business that had to be taken care of immediately. Itachi looked at him sharply but was evidently made comfortable by whatever he saw in the younger man's eyes, because he simply nodded and wished him the best. The Nara apologized again before taking his leave.

The waiters cleared away the main plates and brought out a variety of deserts and coffee for those who remained at the table. Itachi took over the conversation again, and Naruto was lulled into relaxation. He only half-listened to what the others were talking about, instead losing himself in the view as night descended over Tokyo.

. . . . . . .

Sasuke stuck close to his blond as they walked down the crowded street towards Shinsin station. The theater where Deidara was performing was difficult to get to by car, and it was only a short walk away, so they'd decided to travel on foot. He glanced back suspiciously at his brother and Sakura. They almost looked like a couple: the taller, elegant, long-haired gentleman guiding the pretty young woman through the crowd. She was even looking up at him in rapt attention, eyes shining innocently as she spoke, though Sasuke suspected that there was something else going on between them than anything romantic.

Their grandmother would probably adore the idea, even if Sakura was American – she was in a constant state of despair over the relationship status of her two favorite grandsons (and in constant denial of the fact that they were both gay and the eldest in a committed relationship). Sasuke could really do without having to hear another lecture about great-grandchildren. At one point Itachi had said he had a plan to take care of it, but he was taking his own sweet time about putting that plan into action.

No, Sasuke figured that whatever his brother and the pinkette were talking about, it had to do with something else. What, he had no clue, but had this sneaky suspicion that it would probably involve him or the blond – or maybe both. Not that he was one to turn down assistance in that area – if it was assistance. He hated not knowing, though, it put his back up.

Naruto bumped into him and he looked down, frowning. "Dobe, be careful."

The blond looked up unapologetically. "Quit spacing out then. Bastard."

"Hn."

"Oh look, it's the station!"

Sasuke turned to glare at the voice of the woman who had finally caught up with them, looking away from his brothers inquiring look. Women seriously drove him nuts sometimes, even though he liked Sakura. But even the likable ones seemed to think it was their job to get into everyone else's business.

They crammed into the train for the short ride down to Komabatoudaimae. He was pressed up against the blond, and couldn't help but inhale a lungful of his addicting scent. Naruto looked up at him with amusement.

"Careful, teme."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

"If you aren't careful, people are going to keep thinking you've got a stick shoved up your butt."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes then smirked, letting his hand molest the unprotected ass of his blond lover. "I don't think it's mine you need to be concerned about."

Naruto's eyes widened as he glanced around nervously. Sasuke brought their attention back to himself when his fingers pressed in against flesh that was probably still at least a little bit sore. Naruto whispered a curse at him and then pushed back, blushing slightly. The raven felt his cock begin to stir in his pants and sighed, wishing the performance was over and that he could drag the blond back to his apartment right now. Alas, it was not to be.

He ignored the knowing look that Itachi gave him as they exited the train and took the winding streets back to the theater. It was more crowded than he thought – alongside the artsy types that frequented the surrounding area, he also saw a few businessmen, crowded together like deer amidst the wolves. A few came over and spoke to him or Itachi, and he wondered if they were trying to curry favor by supporting the Uchiha's adopted cousin. He doubted they were there for the show.

Deidara's shows tended to be unapologetically shocking. They weren't totally to the raven's taste, but he'd grown used to them, and even enjoyed them on occasion. He appreciated the fact that the elder blond made an effort to weave traditional elements into the performances, a fact that attracted more than just the contemporary artist crowd, but some forward-thinking traditionalists as well. He even wondered if he'd see Haku here tonight – but hoped not.

They found their seats in the front middle section and sat down, waiting as the lights flickered to signal that the performance was about to begin. Once everyone was settled, they lowered until the entire theater was bathed in darkness.

When the light came back up, it highlighted a single, gnarled, yaezakura tree in the right foreground of the stage, the multi-petaled cherry blossoms pale pink against the darkness. A few petals drifted down from the ceiling onto a solitary figure beneath the tree, robed in a silvery-blue kimono. He was crouched in child's pose, arms outstretched before him on the ground, facing center stage. A single plaintive note from a Shakuhachi began, rising in volume before dipping down into a slow, measured melody. It was juxtaposed by the deep measured beat of a taiko drum.

The lights rose in the background, illustrating a model of early Tokyo on the left side of the stage in the back corner. A tank of water stood opposite it, in full view of the audience. Three screens hung above the model in full view of the audience. Below the center screen there was a curtain, backlit with flickering yellow and orange light. The shadows thrown up against the curtain gave the image of a man striking an anvil with his hammer, the blows matching each beat of the deep drum.

The center screen flickered to life, showing a pastoral scene from Taishou era. The two screens on either side came up, each showing a similar picture – smiling children, happy people, and cities embracing progress. The pictures flicked from one to the next, each change randomly mirroring the beat of the music as it progressed.

Slowly, however, other images crept in – scenes from the more militaristic days of the early Showa period. There were images of troops lined up for inspection, and once in a while even headlines about the Japanese Imperial Army's actions in China. The pictures were now of schoolboys all obediently listening to their teacher, and the words "They're blooming, they're blooming, the cherries are blooming. Red, white, forward, forward, forward troops" scrolled over all the screens. Sasuke wondered if Naruto could read it. It didn't matter too much anyhow; he doubted he'd get the reference.

It wasn't too hard to see where it was going, but admittedly it was a bit difficult to watch. The tempo of the music increased, images leading up to the war flickering on the screen. Then, there was silence. The two side screens when black, and all that could be seen was the headline announcing the attack on Pearl Harbor. He felt the blond squeeze his hand, and he squeezed back, holding his breath. The only sound was the continued beat of that one deep drum, matched with the constant hit of the hammer. Then the shadows behind the curtain were erased by a bright orange light that bled to red.

When the music came back, it was loud and staccato, rapid-fire bursts of German sounds played with Japanese music. With the first burst, Deidara jumped up from the child's pose and threw off the blue and silver kimono, revealing one of red fading to deep black. He began to dance as images from the war peppered the screens. Sasuke didn't know how he managed to stay graceful in those clothes, but he did. With one crescendo, the headlines announcing American B-29 bombers had attacked Tokyo appeared on the center screen. Buildings in the model Tokyo began to burst into flames, and a yellow light came on behind the cherry tree making the blossoms brightly pink.

The photographs displayed the horrors of war. Sasuke noticed that a few of the businessmen up and left without saying a word, and was certain that Itachi was identifying exactly who they were. He was certain some of the others who had come were now regretting their decision, but at least they were polite enough not to cause a public affront. That would probably earn more respect for them and their companies than their mere attendance alone.

On the side screens, scenes from the war in the Pacific were interspersed with images of the war in Europe. English headlines about the Battle of Brittan were interposed with pictures of the damage done to Tokyo. The sakura petals that had been falling changed to ash. The red backlight of the curtain slowly faded, and the music slowed. When the images of Hiroshima and Nagasaki came on the screen, it was almost as if they were afterthoughts. The real highlight came with the picture of the signing of the Japanese Instrument of Surrender.

Deidara turned to watch it as it held on the screen, then walked off stage. The red light behind the smith faded away completely, and again, the only thing breaking the silence was the slow steady beat of that one deep drum.

Slowly, pictures of Occupied Japan began to appear, and the music played softly. The yellow light behind the smith came back on. The burned out model of Tokyo sat as a constant reminder as more pleasant scenes began to emerge. Deidara came back out as signs of Post-Occupation began, wearing a silvery-grey business suit. The show began a gentle build towards more recent times. It highlighted the rise of the salaryman, juxtaposing images of men in suits with old illustrations of the Shogun's troops.

The music became festive as it chronicled the bubble economy of the eighties, and then popped, announcing the economic slump that followed in the 90's. More recent scandals and events were portrayed alongside everyday scenes, building tension to which, Sasuke knew, there was no good resolution thus far. As the images moved closer and closer to the current day, Deidara moved back behind the curtain, taking something from the smith. Idly, Sasuke wondered if it was an actual person or just a prop.

The blond came back out carrying a hot clay-covered sword-blade in one hand and walked over to the tank of water. Then he looked up at the audience for the first time. The music paused, and he thrust the blade into the water as the lights went out.

. . . . . . .

Sakura wasn't quite sure what to make of the performance. Most of the audience members left quietly. A few crowded around Deidara as he came out from backstage, looking exhausted and wearing a simple blue t-shirt and jeans. She noticed one off the men in suits berate him for a moment before Itachi arrived at the blond's side, but most of the others seemed to be full of praise. She came up and patted his shoulder, knowing he was probably too out of it to appreciate any empty comment she might come up with. Naruto and Sasuke were close behind.

As they waved off the well-wishers inviting them to go celebrate, Sakura turned to the men to discuss their plans for the evening. Itachi said that he and Deidara would probably be going back to the home – his car was parked at the office. She knew with a glance that Naruto and Sasuke were probably craving some along time as well. She dragged a promise from Naruto that the two would meet her to go do touristy stuff the next morning. The three of them shared a cab back to the hotel, a tired Naruto leaning his head against Sasuke's shoulder. She turned to watch the lights, smiling to herself at the look in Sasuke's eyes that dared her to say anything – anything at all – about that.

When she got up to her room, she sighed and dropped down on the bed, checking her phone for messages. She smiled, listening to the one from her lover, not feeling quite so lonely. Doing a quick calculation of the time difference between Rome and Tokyo, she figured it would be fine to call him – after all the lovey-dovyness surrounding her today, she needed just a little of her own.

. . . . . . .

When they got home that evening, Deidara was highly worked up. Not that Itachi minded it when Dei was worked up, but it annoyed him when the reason was something besides himself. It was to be expected, however. His lover was always worked up after a show, no matter how well it had gone; running over the performance in his mind again and again to see how it could be improved. Of course then there were nights like this, when it wasn't just the performance on the blond's mind, but the audience.

Deidara had been relatively quiet on the ride back to the house, looking out the window at the lights of the city. Itachi had just cranked up the music and glanced over at him while driving them home, admiring the grace of the profile. Deidara's long blond hair had flowed over his shoulders, washed pale by the darkness and flickering light from the stereo. He'd been tempted to just keep driving out of town up to the family estate, kidnapping his lover for the rest of the weekend, but his monopolistic instincts were overruled by his good sense.

After they entered the house, the raven watched as the blond stalked into their living room. Itachi ducked into the kitchen and grabbed a couple of glasses of water. He paused for a moment in the entrance to the living room when he came back, watching as Deidara paced on the tile floor, furious. The raven quirked his lips briefly before walking into the living room and setting the glasses on the dark wooden table in front of the black sofa. He sat on the sofa and took a sip from one of the glasses.

Dei looked over at him and frowned, before saying, "Such assholes! I can't believe they just up and left like that, yeah."

"Hn."

The blond pouted, and Itachi languidly motioned him over, resting his arm on the back of the couch in invitation. Dei huffed, and then came and took a drink from the opposite glass. He glanced at Itachi before relenting, coming around and sitting with his back curled against the raven's side. Itachi drew him closer, nuzzling his hair. He could feel the tension start to drain out of the blond. Itachi set his glass down on the end table and took the other one from his boyfriend, doing likewise. He listened as the blond continued to rant, making little soothing noises. Finally, he tipped the blond's head back, interrupting his tirade.

"What?" Deidara said, sulking. "All it was about was the truth! Most people don't even know a rat's ass about what actually happened, and yet it's so mmph!"

Kisses were very useful tools. Not that he wasn't taking the blond seriously. He just wanted Dei to take him seriously as well.

Itachi leaned up from the kiss, looking down with satisfaction at the slightly glazed look in Deidara's eyes. With the shirt the blond was wearing, the stormy grey had taken on light blue overtones.

"But –"

"I know, pet," Itachi soothed, letting his fingers brush the blond hair out of his lover's face. "But you have to remember, truth is like oxygen."

Deidara quirked an eyebrow.

"It's deadly if you haven't adapted to handle it properly."

The grey eyes stared at him a moment, then Dei smirked up at him, chuckling lightly. He leaned his head against the raven's chest, a faraway look in his eyes. "But they should, yeah."

"Some will."

"They act like I'm saying everything about the country is horrible, and I'm just some outsider that doesn't know what he's talking about."

"Hn," Itachi said, massaging his boyfriend's scalp. "You know us, we get like that. But not all of us."

Deidara sighed, inhaling his lover's scent deeply.

"Personally, I thought the show was brilliant," the raven continued.

The sight of Dei's wide eyes blinking up at him would have been worth even a lie, but it was the truth. The show wasn't easy to take, but its impact was as delicate as a swordcut.

Deidara searched his face for a moment, before smiling. "Thank you."

"Truth," Itachi said, shrugging slightly. He watched the blond; looking for the minute signs that Dei was getting over the nervous energy from the show and ready to direct that energy into something more – productive. A slow lazy blink, the sight of grey eyes actually truly looking at him the way he was looking at the blond, a pink tongue that snuck out to taste just-kissed lips – all of these things were the hints he was looking for. He leaned over and kissed those lips again, deeper, feeling Dei clutch his shirt then snake an arm around his neck, opening up to the kiss. Itachi let his hands trail down his lover's back, cradling him closer before pulling back, licking his lips to break the thread of saliva that still connected him to the blond. He smiled in satisfaction, letting a hint of predatory instinct creep into his gaze. A good hunter, after all, is very patient.

"Want a shower, pet?"

A slow smile was his answer, the look in Deidara's eyes meeting his challenge. He was always delighted that the blond had gotten over his fear and stopped running away from this. The passion between them was like fire, only quenched when bodies were overwhelmingly exhausted, and then some.

Deidara took a deep breath and arched slightly, letting it out with a coy smile. "Yeah, I think a shower sounds great."

Itachi let his hands wander down the delectable body in his arms a moment longer, and then helped the blond up, following him up the stairs into their bedroom. Operation "soothe the blond out of his snarky mood" finished, mission "screw the blond into complete and total and ultimate submission… again" barely begun.

**... . . . ... . . . ...**

**Review Resopnses:**

**KyouyaxCloud - hopefully that satisfies at least a little bit of your curiosity :) **

**Rizember - *ducks* I got your hint! I just... well... enjoy being mean to Sasuke sometimes? ^_^ He can take it! He'll get plenty later :) And tanku 4d cookeeeee**

**Hope you guys didn't mind the history lesson tooo much, I've had that show building in my mind for a bit. I hope it was clear what all was going on. For those interested, the "They're blooming" bit comes from the revised textbooks printed as the schools became more militarized, in contrast to the earlier textbooks that were not so brightly colored but used more peaceful words like "flowers" and "doves" and "beans" and such. Please don't sue me for using the stuff I discover in my research as inspiration for my writing :)**

**Oh, and a yaezakura is a sakura tree with flowers that have more than five petals. They're pretty :)**

**Ja ne!**


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character.**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, smuty smut smut, language per usual, kinkyness, etc.**

**A/N: Ok fine. Now gimme a cookie :P Oh, hope you don't mind, this is a bit longer than my normal update... I wrote the last scene first and then the first one just ... well you'll see. Enjoy!**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^ **

**...**

Deidara paused for a moment at the top of the stairs, feeling fingers brush against his ass. He glanced back, smirking as he where Itachi's eyes were looking, then wiggled just a bit. The raven glanced up at him with a look of unabashed appreciation, and then lightly smacked his ass, making the blond giggle. He ducked into their room and was heading towards the bathroom door when Itachi stopped him.

The blond turned and looked, curious. When Itachi kissed him briefly then stepped back and flicked the bedroom lights on low, he felt a small tremor of trepidation.

"Itachi?"

"Shh." The raven spent a moment just looking at him, not moving. The butterflies in Deidara's stomach grew. He longed for that look. It terrified him. He had been curious what kind of mood the raven was in, but he had tried to ignore this possibility. Dei put on his most seductive smile and walked up to his lover, wrapping his arms around his neck and kissing him deeply. He felt Itachi respond, felt the raven's hands come around to play with his ass and pull him hard against the raven's body. Deidara let his fingers undo Itachi's hair tie and then run through the silky softness, reveling in it. He broke the kiss to whisper in the Itachi's ear how much he had missed him, and though he might have been successful in changing the atmosphere when he felt his lover start pushing him back into the room. Only, it wasn't to the bed, as he had hoped.

Instead, Itachi angled him so that they stood in front of the full-length mirror next to the dresser in front of the foot of the bed. He knew the raven had seen through his attempt at misdirection because of the hand that stroked his lower back gently, too gently. Deidara wanted to refuse when his t-shirt was pulled up by that same hand, but just closed his eyes, hugging tightly to the one person he trusted most in the world as he heard the fabric fall to the ground.

He felt Itachi's hands trace over his naked back, knew the difference when the fingertips ran over the webbing of scar tissue that covered most of one side. He knew Itachi was looking at it in the mirror. They rarely talked about it. Occasionally Itachi would call him angel, but never before, always after, when he thought the blond was probably asleep. Those times, Dei could put up with by pretending he didn't hear, but pretending wouldn't work now. Itachi slowly but firmly made him turn around and face the mirror.

He looked down, and then kept his eyes closed when Itachi lifted his chin and brushed his blonde hair over his shoulder. He tilted his head as he felt soft lips along his neck, feeling the arm resting just above the top of his jeans pull him closer to the raven.

"Naruto has scars," the raven murmured softly.

Dei wondered if that was what set him off: seeing Naruto display his scars to the world without fear. He wondered if it was the memories evoked by being in Hong Kong. Or their absence from each other. Or the show. He tried analyzing the situation, trying to build layers between him and the situation at hand. He felt the raven rest his chin on his shoulder. He knew Itachi was looking at him again. The arm around him tightened as he moved slightly as if to get away, and he felt Itachi's other hand come up to trace lightly over the skin of his chest. The next words he heard made his newly-built layers start to crack.

"You are beautiful."

He couldn't help it, he had to look. He first looked at Itachi, meeting his eyes. To him, the raven was the epitome of beauty. His long dark hair cascaded around his face, slightly wild. The pale skin almost glowed in contrast under the low lighting. The lips were lush and inviting, making Deidara wish once again that they were on the bed with those lips against his skin. The blond had to admit, though, that probably Itachi's best features were his eyes. They were beautiful and expressive, if you knew how to read them. He loved gazing into them, could almost drown in the depths of their darkness. But they saw far too much.

Because really, the scars had never been the problem.

Oh, they were part of the issue, of course – though he didn't mind his own so much. But not as much as the lack of imperfection in other places.

He forced himself to tear his gaze away from the raven and look into the mirror objectively, trying to separate himself from the man who stood before him in the glass. In the reflection, there were no scars to be seen on the pale flesh of the blond. From the front, from the waist up, he looked perfect. Pure. In moments like this, forced to stand exposed, he hated it. It felt like a lie. There was part of him that wish he'd been born ugly, not some blond ghost from the north that stood out among everyone else. He liked it better when Itachi left his marks on the pale skin. When he was younger, he'd thought about marring the perfection with something more permanent, but the memory of the only mother he had ever known stopped him. He knew she would be horrified.

He knew Itachi believed what he said. He knew he wasn't taking about just his looks, but still, he was talking about his looks. He knew Itachi wanted him to believe he was beautiful. Because of that, a part of him wanted to. But another part didn't want to admit it, because it was safer to not be beautiful. To not be so exposed. To put on layers, and control what people saw – even Itachi. Sometimes, Itachi let him do it, but not all the time.

In some ways, it would have been so much easier if Itachi just wanted someone to fuck. It would have been easy to do anything the raven asked of him; he had no shame – he'd done it all before, for men he hated rather than this raven he loved. But Itachi wanted more than that. Itachi wanted everything. He wanted too much.

Dei knew he could walk away at any moment – hell, it wouldn't even involve breaking ties; he could just walk away for a week or a day or a few hours. He knew because he'd done it, especially in the early days when Itachi had started in on this particular kink. All he had to do was say no.

But over time, a part of him had started to believe the raven, started to believe that he was beautiful and worthy of the look he saw in the Itachi's eyes whenever he looked at him. That he was owned, but more than just owned; he was adored. Not for any of the illusions he put up to camouflage his true self. Instead, adored because of that true self, even with its imperfections. He fought it – no, he rebelled against it, inside. But part of him believed, and part of him really truly wanted to believe.

It was easier when the arm around his waist slid back a bit and undid the buttons on his jeans, and Itachi slid them down to the ground. He watched the raven's face, feeling a trace of smugness when the quirk of his lover's eyebrows revealed his emotions after confirming that the blond had indeed gone commando after his show. The sight of the scar that snaked around his upper right leg helped ease some of the other tension. He knew Itachi was aware of this as well.

A flash of ownership appeared in the raven's eyes again as he looked over Dei's fully naked body, but he didn't look as long. He'd done what he'd intended to do, at that stage. Deidara let himself be led into the outer bathroom, knowing that things were just beginning. The raven flipped on the bright lights and pushed Dei against the counter, lifting a hand to his chin and inspecting his face critically. The blond submitted to his lover's care as he got out the cleansers and started removing every trace of the stage makeup used. It wasn't much – Dei always washed his face carefully after the show. But Itachi had higher standards; he wouldn't tolerate it if Deidara didn't take care of his skin.

But that was only part of the reason. In another sense, it was another layer being stripped away. Another level of protection gone. Another step closer to letting Itachi in past all his defenses.

Next, Itachi stepped out of his own clothes. Deidara watched him, feeling a slight flash of guilt when the shirt came off and the Itachi's own scars were revealed. They weren't as big, and his burns hadn't been as bad, but it bothered him. He knew it didn't bother Itachi. The raven came back to him and kissed him, embracing him so that they were pressed together skin to skin. Then Itachi stepped back and looked at him searchingly for a moment.

Deidara wanted to know what he was looking for, wanted to know what look to give him – but he didn't have time to fully decipher that short glance. Instead, Itachi turned and tugged at his hand, leading him into the inner bathing room and shutting the door. He guided the blond to sit on the stool and lean against the wall, legs apart. Dei looked at his lover from half-opened eyes, suddenly feeling the exhaustion start to hit. The warm water that Itachi sprayed over his body didn't help, especially when the raven knelt down and started washing his left foot.

He winced as Itachi massaged the sole with his thumbs. It hurt. The pain was only temporary, though. Slowly the raven became satisfied that the muscles were sufficiently loosened and started working his way up the blond's leg, not responding to Dei's whimper when the hands stopped before touching him the one place he was starting to desperately need being touched. Instead, Itachi started in on the other foot.

Deidara's frustration slowly started to mount, especially when the massage was just the right side of painful to keep him from giving into his weariness. Then Itachi started in on massaging his hands. In a slight fit of pique he tried pulling the hands down to his cock, but Itachi just looked at him and raised an eyebrow in challenge. Dei sighed and sat back, letting himself be pampered.

Itachi rinsed him off then had him turn around and lean his head back, thoroughly wetting his hair before using the shampoo. The scalp massage was anything but painful. He almost did go to sleep in the middle of it, even though Itachi rinsed the shampoo and conditioner out several times. The blond loved the smell of the shampoo, it was spicy like ginger.

After he was done, Itachi spread soap over his back, washing it thoroughly. Then he finally leaned forward, pulling Deidara back against him as he took the opportunity to wash the blond's chest. Deidara moaned as the washrag ran over his nipples. He felt the raven's hardness brush against his ass and tilted his hips a bit, just to tease. He was rewarded by a small bite on his neck, quickly soothed. Itachi wasted no time in rinsing them both off and then using a big fluffy towel to absorb most of the moisture from the blond's hair before wrapping him up in the towel.

Deidara let Itachi carry him to bed, resting his arms above his head. He was still relaxed, but no longer sleepy. He had the feeling that wouldn't last very long – the emotional roller-coaster ride of a day was bound to take his toll – but at the moment it was enough.

Itachi kissed him, sucking on his bottom lip before pulling back and gazing down at him again with that searching look. Dei was glad that the raven looked satisfied this time, because he was barely thinking straight at that moment. He felt calm but also very very horny. He wasn't the only one either. Itachi leaned down to kiss him more thoroughly, hands pushing down on his wrists to ensure they didn't move from their position above his head. The raven nudged his legs apart and lay between them, continuing to kiss, letting Deidara know in no uncertain terms that his lover wanted him.

The blond's breath caught in his throat as their cocks rubbed together. One hand left his wrists and went over to the bedside table, clicking the cap of the lube he knew they kept there. Suddenly Deidara didn't feel relaxed at all. He arched up into Itachi, curling his legs around him. He felt Itachi react as he pressed up against him. The raven bit his bottom lip and nudged one of his legs with his hand, squeezing his wrists so that Dei wouldn't move them.

Itachi knelt back between the spread legs of his lover. Deidara drank in the sight of the look on Itachi's face as he looked down. He felt completely exposed, but it didn't really matter anymore. All he wanted was the man whose hands came down to finally touch his cock, wrapping a hand around it at the whimper of need that came out of Dei's mouth. The fingers of the other hand traveled down lower, pressing in, massaging the skin outside his asshole.

They broke into him easily. He knew how to relax, how to take them in. Still, they paused before going deeper, twisting around. Itachi never took his eyes off of him. Deidara wanted to blush as he let his gaze trace down lower than the raven's face and look down to where their bodies met, seeing his weeping cock wrapped in the slim hand of his lover. Instead he arched and cried out as Itachi's fingers pressed deeper inside, rubbing over the exact right spot. He probably would have cum if the hand on his cock hadn't stopped him.

As it was, he was shuddering as the raven withdrew his fingers and gathered him up, murmuring for Deidara to wrap his arms around his neck before lining him up and finally, finally, lowering him onto Itachi's hard cock. Both of them cried out as they connected. The blond clung to his lover, moving and letting himself be moved as the hands that supported him dictated, pressed so close he lost all awareness of where his skin ended and the others began. All he could feel was the raven, all he could hear was the soft chanting in his ear that told him he was beautiful – and he believed it.

All distinctions fell away, all higher level thinking stopped, all he knew was that he was his beloveds and his beloved was his. When his orgasm came, it was glorious. His thinking self might have said that the sounds that he made were inelegant, but he didn't care. His lover didn't care either, just drove himself deeper, faster, pushing Deidara to the edge until he passed out from the sensations that overloaded everything that he was.

. . .

The other raven, on the other hand, was dealing with a much more wide-awake blond. A much less obedient blond. A blond who just giggled and slipped away when he growled, making a pretense of examining the art on the walls while Sasuke fumbled with the keys to his front door. Finally done, he held the door open for the blond, intending to snag him as he passed – but somehow Naruto was faster, sliding his shoes off and walking into the apartment. For a moment, Sasuke felt dangerously close to being fed up with the whole situation – then Naruto looked back at him with a gaze that teased but also promised, and suddenly the game was worth it again.

He smiled to himself as Naruto walked into the living room, and then caught sight of the short note on the entryway table. He took it with him as he went to the bathroom, blinking and trying to decipher the contents. Tsubaki was not known for perfectly coherent thought. But even he could make out the meaning behind "crazy blond dancing like a naked crazy person to loud music." He winced, wondering if there was any damage to his precious stereo system.

After finishing his business and completing a short search, he wandered into the living room. The blond was sitting on the loveseat facing the TV, watching music videos. Sasuke smirked. Naruto jumped up as soon as he spotted the raven, a glimmer of challenge in his eyes. That glimmer then slipped behind an innocent mask as Naruto asked him if he wanted any water. He really didn't.

The blond had insisted they go out to drink with a couple of the people that stayed behind after the show. He said he wanted a taste of the Tokyo nightlife, so they all crammed into a tiny pub and enjoyed a couple drinks before Sasuke insistently pulled his lover out of there and towards home. Naruto didn't protest too much, however. Still, all the way back he acted like he didn't know what Sasuke was wanting. He looked shocked when the raven tried to grope him on the train, looking around warily at the other people. Sasuke knew they weren't watching, but he held back anyways. Now that they were alone in his apartment, he didn't intend to hold back for long.

He could be patient though. The raven watched his lover pad into the kitchen on bare feet. He sat down on the black couch facing the window and acted like he was watching the television. When Naruto came back with his glass of water, he sat back down on the loveseat, acting like he wasn't looking over at the raven every five seconds. Sasuke acted nonchalant, but inside he was smirking. Two could play at this game.

When Naruto suddenly got up, though, Sasuke was done with waiting. He got up as well, smirking wickedly at Naruto when the blond looked back questioningly. He saw his lovers eyes light up, but he just stepped away a bit faster. Sasuke followed, keeping pace. Naruto tried walking more quickly, and then finally dropped all pretense. Soon they were running through the apartment, the blond giggling as he wove around the obstacles, Sasuke not trying quite as hard as he could have because he also found himself laughing. It was fun.

Finally he found his opening and grabbed the blond, wrestling him down onto the black couch and kissing him senseless. They both groped for the others clothing. Sasuke made short work of the blond's but managed to somehow keep his own pants, ignoring the protests of the man beneath him as his erection rubbed against fabric instead of skin.

Instead he suddenly changed their positions, moving them to the loveseat and making Naruto kneel facing the back of the couch. The blond looked back at him with narrowed blue eyes that widened in shock when Sasuke pressed a thin plastic tip into his ass.

"What the fuck, bastard?"

Sasuke smirked back in reply, squeezing the short tube and enjoying the look on the others face as he felt the cream push into his ass. "Careful, dobe, or I'll shove the rest of it up there."

The blond glared at him. Sasuke had had to improvise. He really needed to expand his supply, in case – no, when. When the blond was here again, properly his, and they could do this whenever they wanted. For now, he figured the medicated aspect of his chosen substitute probably wouldn't hurt anything.

He smirked in triumph as he pulled the half-empty tube from the blond's ass, tossing it to the side and sliding his pants off, pausing a moment to go ahead and put the condom on. Then he was back to attacking the blond, pulling him close and biting the back of his neck as one hand roamed over all of the spots he'd found the night before, pinching one of the blond's nipples and wondering at the jerk of reaction. He had to smile at the wantonness of the lithe body in his arms. He used his other fingers to probe at the blond's entrance, loving it as the other started to buck against his hand, trying to take him deeper. He obliged for a while, thrusting his fingers inside that warm softness, and then could hold back no longer.

He withdrew his fingers merely to guide his cock to the blond's needy hole, pressing inside and enjoying the gasp that turned into a low moan as Naruto gave himself up without reservation, lowering his head submissively. That and the sound tripped something inside the raven. He'd meant to enter slowly, draw this out, but all of a sudden he was consumed with the need to have. He slammed all the way in, pausing for a moment to make sure he hadn't hurt anything and then moving again at the needy little voice of his blond begging him to fuck him as the warm softness around him gripped almost painfully tight.

He decided to oblige, driving deeper and harder, searching for just the right angle and growling in satisfaction when he felt the blond writhe back against him with a sweet cry of pleasure. The music in the background was a nice touch, and he matched his thrusts to the heavy beat for a while before increasing the pace. He was merciless as he pounded away, rubbing against that same spot with every thrust. He felt the end coming close sooner than he might have liked, but didn't care too much. He was consumed with taking Naruto, and Naruto was being consumed by being taken, calling out his name, arching his back, nails biting into the back of the couch as he gripped it for leverage. Sasuke merely had to reach down and brush his hand against his blond's cock to wring the loudest cry from his lover, catching part of the seed as it left the Naruto's cock but not really caring about the rest as he felt the wonderful tightness around him spasm, calling him to his own release.

They both leaned against the loveseat for a few moments, and then Naruto slid forward, turning and looking up at Sasuke's face. The blond was flushed and beautiful, and smiling. Sasuke grinned back, leaning forward to rest his forehead against the sweaty skin of the other man. Then he gathered his strength and took the blond in his arms, resting his forehead against the others before turning towards the bedroom. He absently wondered what he would have to do to clean the loveseat before Tsubaki came again. He didn't worry too much though. Worst came to worst he could always just buy a new one.

He dropped the blond on the bed and gazed down at him, heart pulled by the softness in his lover's incredibly blue eyes. Then Sasuke grinned, climbing onto the bed and nuzzling the blond's neck before pulling back to look at him again. The grin changed into a smirk, and he asked, "So what does, 'crazy blond dancing like a naked crazy person' mean, anyhow?"

He rather enjoyed the range of emotions displayed on Naruto's face after that comment. More shock, surprise, a blush, and an attempt at coyness which was totally at odds with what Sasuke knew was under the surface. Finally the blond just glanced away, pink still dusting his cheeks, and said, "Um, well you see, Sasuke…"

The story that followed had the raven laughing again. And determining that he wanted to catch a glimpse of what "crazy blond dancing like a crazy person" looked like. And, of course, determining to never letting the crazy blond go – ever.

. . .

Sakura hummed as she stepped out of the bath, stalking over to her bed and pulling out her laptop. The conversation with Kakashi had been very satisfying. The long soak in hot water was also wonderful, though she had to admit she missed her whirlpool bubble-bath. Now, she found she wasn't the least bit tired at all.

She started the laptop and started researching the names Shika had mentioned earlier, looking through all the pictures she could find of the two performers. They were both lovely – and very different, as Shikamaru had promised. She watched a video of Kin in action, then another, absently wondering why two of the guys in the background of her latest videos looked familiar. Then she reached over and pulled out her sketchpad and pencil case, setting it atop the laptop's keyboard and starting to draw.

A few furious sketches later, she switched to Hinata, comparing the two and making new sketches and a few adjustments to the first ones. After a while she looked down at all of them together, tapping her lip with the end of a pencil. Something was still missing. She puzzled over it for a few minutes, and then smiled, putting the drawings to the side and starting a new search. She knew exactly what else she needed – now she just had to find it.

. . .

Shikamaru rolled over in bed, blinking at his phone. Cursing under his breath he reached for it, trying not to wake his beloved. It didn't work. He felt the fingers tracing down his back and sighed, giving into the inevitable and scooting back. He opened the phone and scrolled down, checking the email message and scowling.

"Troublesome woman," he said.

His lover's response was a low chuckle, followed by a kiss to the back of his neck. "What does she want?"

"She felt the need to stay up half the night doing research on the models I suggested, and has one more in mind. She wants to get together for lunch tomorrow to discuss options."

The brunet felt the warm body of his lover press closer to him, doubtless excited by the prospect of seeing the new things the pinkette would come up with. It was more than a little thrilling to have one's idol so close at hand. "Should I come eat with you?"

Shikamaru considered it for a moment, reaching back to trap his lover's hand before kissing the calloused fingertips. They reminded him of the archery conversation at dinner. He ran the calculations through his head, weighing the options, the benefits to the different scenarios and possible issues that might arise. Then he sighed, turning over and smoothing silky soft hair back from an elegant face, and pressed their foreheads together. "If I say no, will you be mad at me?"

He couldn't see the response, but he felt the hand that snaked around to the small of his back, pulling him closer. They kissed briefly, then the hand traced up his body, pushing his long dark hair away from his face. "Of course not. There's time." Another kiss, followed by, "Thank you for working so hard at this, even if it is 'troublesome.'" Shika felt lips quirk against his at the last word.

He let himself be pushed onto his back, wishing for a moment that the lights were on so he could see everything. The opposite was also good, though. He threw an arm over his eyes, focusing more on the touch of those calloused fingertips as they slid across his body, teasing his nipples then dipping south. He tried not to jump as they touched his most ticklish places. He was rewarded by soft lips that followed the path forged by those sly fingers, and butterfly kisses that made him want to insist on more. He didn't; he knew that more would come, and that it would be even more amazing because his skin was awakened to the pleasure. His last offhand thought before the lips dipped further south was that in this case, troublesome was worth it.

**... . . . ... . . . ...**

**Rizember - :P :P :P :P :P silly! There is your smut, where is mah cookee!**

**Afria - thanks! Nah, I came up with it; just seemed to fit. I'm so glad you liked it!**


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character.**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, smuty smut smut, language per usual, kinkyness, etc.**

**A/N: For those who are interested, I've started posting the sidefic to this that explores earlier days in Itachi and Dei's relationship, as well as some things about Sasuke and Shikamaru and some loose ends I may be mean about and not tie up in this fic. It's called "When All Is Said And Done"... and if anyone spots any continuity issues, I'd be vv grateful. Thanks!**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^**

**...**

Itachi watched as the morning light illuminated the pale skin of his lover, still lying exhausted by his side. He'd woken the blond up in the middle of the night and made love to him again, gently and insistently, kissing away the tears that ran from his beautiful eyes. Then he held him close as he sobbed afterwards, stroking his back as the sobs quieted and Deidara fell back into sleep.

He was starting to get hungry but didn't want to leave Dei before he awoke. The blond was always terribly vulnerable the morning after one of those type of nights. When he woke he counted on Itachi to soothe and reassure him before he was ready to be alone again. He leaned forward and kissed the blond's shoulder, leaning back and watching as the grey eyes slowly opened. There was a look of mild irritation in them. Itachi smiled the faintest of smiles, and didn't move as a slim hand came up to trace his jawline. He waited as thoughts ran behind those beautiful eyes before Deidara made up his mind and leaned over to kiss him. He let the blond push him onto his back and watched as he propped himself up on his arms, gazing down into his lover's face. The long blond hair fell around them like a curtain. The raven noted absently that it was a bit tangled – he would get to brush it later on that morning.

Itachi watched as a vague look of accusation came into Dei's eyes, allowing his fingertips to trace in small circles in the small of his lover's back. Finally the blond sighed and flopped down gracelessly on the bed beside his raven, snuggling back into the pillow.

"Chococolate chip pancakes," he ordered.

Itachi smirked at the petulant tone in his lover's voice, and rolled to the edge of the bed. "As you wish."

He was inordinately pleased at having the whole day free. As he walked down the stairs he hummed contentedly, running over in his mind all the other wonderful things he had planned today for the beautiful man upstairs dozing in their bed.

. . .

Naruto woke up, blinking. He felt an arm draped loosely over his lower back and grinned, turning towards the still sleeping raven. Then he happened to glance back at the clock and cursed, trying to remember where his phone had ended up after all the acrobatics the night before. The arm tightened as he started to wiggle free, and he smirked at the noise of disapproval the raven made as he finally slipped out of the bed and padded into the living room.

Once there he found the pile of his clothes, searching in the pockets for his phone. He happened to look over near the window and saw the small tube of ointment, making him blush. Chuckling, he padded back into the bedroom, replaying the events of the night before in his mind before snuggling down next to the raven.

The arm came back, pulling him close. He giggled as the raven's breath whooshed against his neck and leaned back against the warm chest. Sasuke looked at the phone curiously, sneaking his other arm under the blond's side and exploring the tan skin with his hands.

"Yay," Naruto said, finally getting the phone to agree to show him the latest messages.

"What is it?"

"Sakura decided to sleep in this morning. She wants us to meet at the hotel at 11:30 for lunch.

The raven made a small noise of pleasure then nuzzled the blond's neck, urging him to put the phone away. Naruto happily complied, turning over to kiss his lover, pulling back with a smile. He arched as the raven's fingers walked up and down his spine, grinning seductively. The grin slid off his face when he noticed the pensive look in Sasuke's eyes.

"What?"

Sasuke sighed. "When do you have to go home?"

Naruto frowned. They hadn't talked about it, had danced around the issue every time it came close. Trust the raven to ruin all that. He looked serious and thought. "Tomorrow afternoon."

He didn't want to face the look in those dark eyes then, so he nuzzled the raven's neck. He thought about asking him what the raven wanted long-term, but was suddenly scared of the answer. So he didn't say anything, and neither did Sasuke. He just pulled the blond up for another crushing kiss, and they made love almost desperately, hungrily, like they wanted to crawl into the other's skin and stay there forever.

. . .

Shikamaru twitched his lips when he saw Sasuke and Naruto enter the hotel restaurant. Sakura twisted around; wanting to see what was so amusing to the brunet. She chuckled. Sasuke looked more relaxed that Shika had seen him in a long time. He was wearing a simple black t-shirt and jeans. The blond, on the other hand, didn't look relaxed at all. More like, annoyed. And slightly embarrassed.

He was wearing a white t-shirt that was a couple sizes too big for him and the pants from the night before. The neck of the shirt was loose, and showed off tan skin with an impressive array of markings. Moreover, Shikamaru knew that shirt, and he knew that the back was nothing but a big Uchiha symbol. Lord, when Sasuke decided to go for something, he was anything but subtle.

The pinkette scooted around in the booth to make room as Naruto crawled in beside her, followed by a very satisfied looking Uchiha. Shikamaru saw the Uchiha subtly grope the blond's ass as he slid to his seat, earning a very dark look.

"Bastard," Naruto muttered.

Sasuke clasped his hands in front of him and rested his elbows on the table, leaning his face against his hands. "Hmm?"

The blond blushed, glancing over at the Sakura.

Sakura made a show of examining Naruto's back. "Nice shirt," she said, smirking.

Naruto sputtered. "It's his fault!" he said, pointing at the raven.

"Dobe. You're the one who didn't bring any extra clothes."

"That's because we would have had time to come get some, if you hadn't insisted on – "

"Yes?"

Shikamaru hadn't known it was possible for the blond to turn that shade of red.

"Yes, do tell us, Naruto," Sakura purred. Shikamaru almost felt sorry for the poor guy, but was too busy holding in a chuckle to say anything.

"Bite me."

"Looks like someone already has," the pinkette said, delicately pulling at the neck of the shirt with a crooked finger. She lifted an eyebrow at the glower Sasuke gave her, and then pulled back, chuckling slightly. Naruto just crossed his arms and lifted his shoulders, looking like he would be more than happy to slide under the table.

Sakura relented, passing menus to the two men who had joined them at the table. "We've already ordered, but they should be back soon. We ordered orange juice for Naruto and green tea for you, if that's alright?"

Sasuke nodded, flipping the menu open and scanning it. Naruto perked as he gazed down at the menu, and suddenly a brilliant smile broke out on his face. Shika could see why Sasuke was so attracted to him. Sasuke didn't miss the smile either.

"Find what you wanted?" Sasuke asked.

"Omuraisu!"

The raven chuckled. "What are you, a kid?"

"Teme," the blond growled. "What are you having?"

Sasuke looked down at his menu, face calm. "Omuraisu."

Shikamaru exchanged a look with Sakura, both of them trying not to laugh at the sputtering blond. Then he glanced at Sasuke, catching the look of happiness in the raven's eyes as he glanced over at the blond, still trying to keep a straight face. Oh, if only Itachi could see his baby brother like this.

Their waitress chose that moment to come up and take their order. Naruto flipped in an instant from being indignant to being charming, a fact not lost on Sasuke. Neither was the fact that the waitress was utterly charmed. The raven scowled after she left, then glanced over at Naruto, who had this smirk on his face that made him look like a kitsune. Shikamaru could just see the challenge building between the two, and decided to do something about it before the lunch lost all possibility of being productive. He did have things to get back to, after all.

That thought made him turn to Sakura and say, "So, about the research you did last night?"

Suddenly the attention of everyone at the table was on the pinkette. She carefully cleared a space on the table in front of her, wiping it off with a napkin before laying her sketchbook down.

"Yes, I really like the models you suggested," Sakura replied. "I'll have to refine it further, of course, but these were some of my initial concepts."

She showed them the sketches she'd done of Hinata first, the first in a mix of lilac and dark silvery purple. The color would contrast nicely with the almost bluish black that was Hinata's natural hair color. The bodice was tight and dark, and the sleeves likewise, off the shoulder and down to right above the wrist. The waistline mirrored the heart shape of the top of the bodice, starting at the sides at the bottom of the ribcage and then arching down to meet just below the belly button. The severity of the bodice was offset by a design of what he guessed would be lilac ribbon. The skirt was loose and flowing down to the model's ankles, with an irregular design picked out in the dark purple. A gauzy border of the same light color softened the top of the bodice and covered the shoulders demurely, and poofed out from the bottom of the sleeves to cover the wrists.

It looked like the dress of a fairy tale princess with hints of naughtiness woven in. It didn't do anything for him, but princess cafes and the like were popular, so it might work. The second outfit was more innocent, a concoction of pale pink melding into lilac with blue ribbon threading around it. It actually seemed like it would be practical, something a girl could wear to watch fireworks on a warm summer evening. He could imagine how the skirt would flounce in the breeze.

The third dress was twilight purple, sleeveless, a tight sheath that extended all the way down. The collar was high, buttoning at the neck but then splitting out beneath, exposing a leaf-shaped patch of flesh before curving into a point. All the edges were wrapped in a light blue color. The plainness of the cut was offset by the gradual buildup of design, picked out in that same starlight blue, coming off of the tip of the cutout and mirroring the curve above before branching out, spiraling down and fractaling across the skirt. There was a light blue belt that marked off the waist, thick like an obi. That would be interesting when it was completed.

Then she showed the sketches she'd done for Kin. The colors were darker, more pronounced – no more pastels. Some fluorescents, some red. Actual black this time. There were elements of fairytale here as well – but more what one would expect from the demons, though one of the evening gowns might pull off a surprising elegance if it was made the way it was drawn. He particularly liked the one that mirrored Hinata's third dress, only in black and a bright scarlet – and instead of just being embroidered, the main line dipping down from the bodice appeared to be a zipper, spiraling around the body under the curve of the breast, dipping in a diagonal across the ass, then coming around to end halfway up a thigh-high slit in the side. Red stained the black on the other corner of the skirt, gradiating up as it faded into darkness. From the zipper, stitching picked out thorny vines and leaves, and the occasional small red fruit.

"Sugar and spice, and everything nice," Sakura said when he finally looked up.

"Just what little girls are made of," Naruto finished, grinning.

Shikamaru chuckled to himself. Not just little girls. And that zipper could be very interesting.

He looked up at the pinkette expectantly, and said, "They should work well together I agree, but you wanted something more?"

She smiled and picked up the sketchbook, flipping the pages. Their waitress brought food out, but Sasuke waved for her to set it on the edge of the table. Shika was glad they'd chosen a relatively big booth.

When Sakura set it down, the model was different. Wavy dark hair in wisps around her face instead of the long straight hair that both Kin and Hinata had. The clothes were different too, more subdued and colorful, with less severe lines. Instead of red on black, the long dress was red with golden trim. There was a red and white sundress decorated with a subtle black pattern. One had a high waist that flared out a bit, like what you would see on a…

"Mother," Shikamaru murmured, shifting to get a better look. Of course. He smiled. Why not go after the whole demographic at once, and show the older customers that they could be just as attractive as their younger counterparts, in clothes that didn't make them feel uncomfortable or like they were trying to be something they weren't. Clothes that they could really live in too, just as the younger ones would want something they could wear when they went out. It was brilliant. But, that was why they were getting in bed with this company – in some cases, he thought, glancing over at Sasuke and Naruto, quite literally. The blond was leaning towards the sketchbook with an intense look on his face. Sasuke was leaning over as well, but he took a moment to tuck in Naruto's tag, fingers tracing in an intimate touch that Shika looked away from.

He looked up at her. "I'm assuming you have someone in mind?"

She nodded, looking pleased. "There was this duo that was popular a few years back; I think it was called the Purple Flowers or something? Anyhow, they retired, but I know one of the women still does some modeling sometimes. I thought that maybe the people that knew her when she was younger and identified with her then would be drawn to Sakura if she modeled for us. Her name is Sarutobi Kurenai."

Shika flicked his gaze to Sasuke's at the name. He noted the slightly widened eyes followed by a smirk. They had both met her; the other member of the duet, Mitarashi Anko, was a family friend of the Uchihas. What most people didn't know was that the two were still best friends – in fact, Anko lived with Kurenai and her husband Asuma. He'd heard stories that Asuma's daughter ranked her favorite people as Kurenai, then Anko, and only then her father Asuma. It caused a few raised eyebrows, but the Mitarashi family helped ensure that no untoward rumors ever lasted.

He could see how Kurenai and Hinata would work well together. They were both alumni from the same girls' academy and university. He also figured that the woman would have the strength to hold her own against the more volatile Kin. It could work.

"Let me make some phone calls this afternoon, and I'll see what I can line up. She may be easier than the other two."

"That would be great," Sakura said, picking up her sketchbook and frowning at Naruto when he tried to stop her. "I'm starving, aren't you?"

The blond blinked and turned towards the end of the table as if seeing the food for the first time. He grinned, waiting patiently as Sasuke put his food in front of him then decorating the egg with his a spiral of ketchup. "Itadakimasu!" he said, the others following his example as they dug into their food.

. . .

Deidara giggled.

Itachi slapped his stomach lightly. "Quit that. Be still."

"I can't help it, it tickles."

The raven growled. "Do you want me to tie you down?"

Deidara giggled again. "Like that would help with the ticklishness?"

Itachi glared up at him, but the blond just smirked at the threat. The black-haired man narrowed his eyes, then gave a smirk of his own and leaned forward, blowing.

"Ah! Itachi!" the blond said, arching up a bit and tightening his hold on the headboard. "That's fucking cold!"

Itachi chuckled. "Then be still and let me finish so it will dry properly."

He smiled, gazing down at his lover's chest, and dipped the brush again into the black paint. He wasn't a great artist, but even he had learned to do calligraphy in his youth. This, however, was much more fun than any of those lessons had ever been. Deidara's pale skin was the perfect canvas – and he was incredibly sensitive. Plus, it was always fun to see how the picture would change when his nipples hardened, or relaxed. Or how the curve of skin over bone changed with a breath, or a gasp.

He admired the pattern built so far – the red and white fan above his lover's heart, as he always placed it. Dei had mentioned once about getting it tattooed, but he had vetoed the idea. He didn't need marks on this perfect skin to know who Deidara had chosen to belong to. The rest of the design today was of birds – black birds and white birds, melding into one another. He doubted it was the best artwork in the world, but he didn't mind. He touched the end of his paintbrush against the pink eye of one of the birds, smirking at the gasp from Deidara as his nipple hardened under the touch. Itachi heard and saw the intake of breath as he held the damp bristles of the brush above the other nipple, knowing Deidara was waiting in anticipation. He had thought about putting a blindfold on his pet, so he wouldn't know when or where the brush would land – but this was nice too. It meant he could look up and watch those grey eyes watching his every move.

It was funny how Deidara was always so shy about being exposed, but always loved being decorated. It was probably because the man was so in love with art – even the type that was only for the two of them to see, and that washed away with the right type of soap and water. But then, maybe the transient nature was part of the appeal. As for Itachi himself, he knew he was just a very visual person.

He ran the tip of the brush around the nipple, feeling the blond beneath him squirm a bit. The white birds were simpler. He could have used white paint, but chose this time to stick with the paleness of the skin. He made a few more lines, sitting back and looking the design over critically. "Want to see, pet?"

Deidara affected an air of nonchalance, and then nodded. Itachi held up a mirror and angled it so that the blond could get the full effect. "Nice. Done?"

Itachi chuckled. "Not yet."

He shifted off the blond, careful not to upset the paints. Gazing down at the taught flesh of his lover's stomach, Itachi mused for a moment, noticing that his lover was already nicely aroused. He rested the end of the paintbrush against his lips as he thought, hearing the slight gasp as he sucked it into his mouth. It was a thin, smooth brush used for making delicate lines, barely a few millimeters thick at the end and only widening a bit towards the bristles. He knew Deidara was remembering times when it hadn't been used for merely painting. He always enjoyed teaching Dei things about sex that he hadn't been exposed to in his past.

Reaching a decision, he drew a few more lines, finishing up the birds and letting a decorative tail loop down above the blond's belly button. Then he signed it, noticing how the blond's breath had grown more ragged as he was able to see his own cock while Itachi worked. The cock had grown even harder, especially since Itachi had "accidently" brushed it a few times with his arm. He sat up and recapped the paints, setting the brush down on the tray. He glanced up. Was that a look of disappointment in the blond's eyes? Maybe. That had been a particularly intense night; though the picture he'd drawn had been totally ruined. He wondered if Deidara would ask for it, or if he'd give in if he asked.

No to the second, no matter the first, he decided. Today was his day. And he had other things in mind. He left the blond there while he took the paints over to the dresser, setting them down and messing with them a moment before glancing back to assess the situation. Deidara was looking increasingly impatient.

"Make sure not to move around too much, pet."

He almost chuckled as the blond bared his teeth at him. He liked driving him to a certain edge of temper; it made things so much more interesting. The glare in those grey eyes changed a bit as Itachi let his eyes trace down the pale body to the straining cock. Was it his imagination, or was it growing even harder? Itachi licked his lips, noticing the hitch in his lover's breath, and then turned around again to tease him. He wondered if the blond would beg.

Probably not. At least not right away. But soon.

**... . . . ... . . . ... . . . ... . . . ...**

**Kyouyax - thanks! ^_^ Hope you enjoyed.**

**KoeZ - awww, at some point I may, thought it will have to wait.**

**Chibiwu - ^_^ hope some of your questions are answered... others, well... i'm a meanie :)**

**Afria - *bats eyelashes innocently* we'll just have to wait and see, won't we darling?**

**hehehe :) Hope all the descriptions on the clothes made sense. Its one of those other things where I can see it in my head but can't draw it for crap... all of my stuff is abstract, I'm shit for symetry when I really want it.**


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character.**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, smuty smut smut, language per usual, kinkyness, etc.**

**A/N: For those who are interested, I've started posting the sidefic to this that explores earlier days in Itachi and Dei's relationship, as well as some things about Sasuke and Shikamaru and some loose ends I may be mean about and not tie up in this fic. It's called "When All Is Said And Done"... and if anyone spots any continuity issues, I'd be vv grateful. Thanks!**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^**

**...**

Deidara tightened his fingers impatiently around the wooden slat of the headboard, fingertips rubbing the curves carved into the wood. He was propped up just enough to be able to have a good view of his boyfriend standing at their dresser. His raven hair was pulled back, flowing down the center of his bare back. Deidara would much rather be touching that back, tracing the muscles there. He could see faint scratch marks from the night before. Normally that would have made him smirk, to have marked the infamous Itachi Uchiha – but at the moment, his emotions were in a turmoil.

He was still strung out from the night before, and the week without Itachi – and Itachi knew he wanted him. Bad. And so of course, he had to be all mean about it, standing there with nothing on but the red pants Deidara had bought for him last Christmas. Loose red sleeping pants held up by a simple drawstring, made out of some stretchy fabric so soft Deidara couldn't help but run his hands over it normally, if his hands were free. Now, he was just annoyed that the looseness of the cloth didn't do much beyond hint at the deliciously firm ass it covered.

He made a little noise to signify his displeasure at being left alone. Itachi was doing it on purpose. He knew he was, but patience wasn't always Dei's strong suit.

Finally, finally Itachi turned around and started back towards the bed, sitting down beside the blond's legs and tracing his thigh with gentle fingertips.

"I wonder if the paint's dry yet?"

Deidara made a strangled noise as those questing fingertips walked up his thigh, so close to the area he wanted touched. They avoided it, pressing in to scratch lightly in the curve of his hip. Itachi looked down, frowning slightly. "I may have left a bruise last night, sorry pet."

They looked at each other, a smirk making its way onto Deidara's lips. He wasn't sorry, not really. But not like Dei wanted him to be, or wished he'd been gentler the night before. He sucked in his stomach as the fingers traced up over its skin, carefully brushing against the last bits painted and testing them before traveling up to the main part of the design. It drove him nuts, to have those light touches on his skin, especially as the tail of Itachi's hair slid over a shoulder and brushed against his leg. He could feel everything so much it was almost irritating.

Itachi made a satisfied noise, and Deidara switched from looking at his fingertips to looking at his lover's face, warmth coiling in the pit of his stomach at the sight of the heat trapped just below the surface of those night-dark eyes. He raised an eyebrow in question, and Itachi nodded, crawling over the blond and sliding his arms underneath his shoulders. Deidara let go of the headboard, letting his fingers slide instead into the hair of the man hovering above him, never breaking eye contact.

"Gentle, baby," Itachi said, and Dei knew it wasn't about his fingers in the jet black hair, loosening the hair tie, but was still about the painting. A warning not to embrace the raven, to risk smearing things before Itachi was ready. He pouted, but obeyed, even though he could have pulled himself up, held onto the broad shoulders above him, touched that skin he so wanted to touch with everything he was. But he didn't.

Itachi rewarded him by leaning down for a kiss, gentle and hot and teasing, sucking the blond's tongue into his mouth with a promise that Dei hoped would soon be fulfilled. He let himself be taken by the kiss, loving the feeling of the mouth, the softness of Itachi's pants pressing against him, the feeling of the long dark hair flowing over his arms as he rested his hands on the back of the raven's neck.

He let his head lie back as the lips left his, feeling the softness of the pants rub against the inside of his legs as Itachi moved down, feeling the feather light brush of hair over his chest. He tangled his fingers in the ends of a few strands, careful not to press his arms against his body. Itachi's breath ghosted over his cock teasingly, arms wrapping under his thighs to hold his hips down.

"I got you a present in Hong Kong, pet." Itachi said. Deidara tightened his fingers in the long hair as the tip of the raven's tongue traced the bottom of the head of his cock, so light he could barely feel it. "Do you want it now or later?"

The blond couldn't believe it, could barely even think. What kind of present could it be? His mind raced, from the naughty to the crazy to the elegant – because that's just how Itachi was, you could never quite tell what he meant by the word present. It drove Deidara insane – though not as insane as the mouth that suddenly engulfed the tip of his cock, or the tongue that pressed in against his slit, sucking so hard he tried to arch his hips up, meeting resistance from the raven's fingers. He made a split decision. "Later, later, oh please later."

He groaned as the mouth left him, looking down accusingly into the smirk of his lover. "Good decision."

He could see the sneakiness in those dark eyes and gave in, pressing up against those fingers, letting his longing show on his face. Itachi chuckled and opened his mouth, then said, "I was going to ask you what you wanted to do in the meantime, but I suppose I'll take this as your answer."

Deidara cried out, clutching the sheets as that hot wet mouth engulfed him again, taking more of him in. Itachi's blowjobs could be so harsh they were almost cruel, but Deidara loved it, every minute of it. The raven knew him well from years of practice. It wasn't over quickly – Itachi drew it out, alternating the harshness with smooth strokes that made Deidara hiss and then moan out loud as his entire length was held tight in the darkness of his lover's mouth. He spoke – because if Itachi couldn't see all of him, he loved to hear him, but the words he used quickly slipped into nonsense, some dark language that was crafted to do nothing but tell the raven of the pleasure he was wringing from the lover writhing beneath him.

Then it changed to a chant, because the mouth on his cock wasn't enough, he needed something more – something in his ass, that felt so empty. So he begged Itachi to fuck him, needed it, told him how much he needed it, cursed when Itachi didn't seem to hear him. The raven only responded by sucking with more ferocity, teasing carefully with his teeth, pulling the blond's pleasure to a peak and then swallowing down every drop.

For the next few minutes Deidara couldn't see straight, just closed his eyes and felt as Itachi let his cock slide out of his mouth. The blond protested faintly as the raven used his tongue to clean up every last drop with quick little licks. Then he sighed as Itachi pulled his legs apart, nosing under the limp cock to suck gently on his balls in a way that was too much; he was still so sensitive. At the same time, he didn't want him to move – just go slower, and keep going down, lower. He didn't. He just gave one last suck, rolling the balls around with his tongue, before nuzzling gently. Then he sat up, smirking, no doubt at the strung-out half-satisfied look on his boyfriend's face.

"Time for your present. Keep your eyes closed and follow me."

. . .

Itachi smiled to himself as he led his reluctant lover into the room next to their bedroom. It had once belonged to the blond, several years before. Now, they'd converted it into a type of studio for their hobby. It had been a bit of a struggle for the raven to come up with a passion that he could share with the blond; he never had been fully as excited about the plastic arts or performance art as Deidara was, though he did enjoy his lover's performances. It wasn't really something they could do together, though. Then, he figured out a way to combine himself, art, and his lover – and things clicked.

He glanced over at the platform at the end of the room. There was a low bed in the center of it, pulled out from the wall. It was draped in a light grey silk. The walls were covered in the same soft fabric. Itachi smirked as he thought of the macho Kisame having to arrange everything before they got home. There just wasn't any time – he hadn't wanted to sneak away from Deidara at all, hated even leaving his side for the performance.

He smiled at the sight of the paper-wrapped package lying on the end of the bed. "You can open your eyes now, pet."

He glanced over at Deidara, not missing any expression on his face as he opened his eyes and saw the way the room was laid out. He smiled – a genuine smile – then his eyes lit up. Itachi figured he might have guessed something like this was coming, but he tried to keep things a surprise.

The blond walked over and knelt before the package the end of the bed, carefully peeling back the layers to see what was underneath. The sound of his gasp was satisfactory. Itachi came up behind him, caressing the top of his lovers head as they both looked down at the present that Itachi had brought him.

Inside were three kimonos, layered one on top of the other. Dei would store them separately, no doubt – he might have griped about them being transported together, if he hadn't been speechless. But there were some things the raven left to his lover to handle; he was just pleased to make him happy.

The outermost kimono was made of thick black silk painted with red-tinged clouds that rose up from the base. The second layer was mostly covered, but Itachi knew that it was a lightweight white silk embroidered with black branches and red berries. The innermost layer was also lightweight silk, this one red, with a simple design of white emulating the outlines of birds.

Deidara paused with his hands over the kimono, and then looked up at Itachi pleadingly. He nodded, smiling to himself as the blond rushed out of the room to the bathroom to wash his hands. He had a suspicion that wasn't the only place Deidara washed – and the blond had wondered why he hadn't fucked him. For a moment he imagined what Dei's reaction would have been if he had. Not that he hadn't been tempted – but Deidara would have been scandalized by the idea of wearing a kimono with cum dripping out his ass.

Kisame must be having too big of an influence on him, Itachi thought ruefully as he set up the cameras and checked the lights. Deidara came back in, humming happily as he carefully finished unwrapping the kimonos. Itachi turned and watched him, snapping a few shots as the blond slipped into the red kimono. Dei made a face at him. He just continued shooting.

"Go wash your hands," the blond insisted. "You know you're going to want to adjust everything to your liking, and I don't want you getting the kimonos dirty."

Itachi chuckled, setting down the camera and coming over to kiss the blond. He was careful not to touch the kimono, just ran his hand up into the silky hair and tasted that delicious mouth until he could feel Dei's knees start to buckle. Then he went and washed his hands.

When he came back, Deidara was standing in front of a mirror adjusting the collars of the kimonos. He looked over his shoulder at the raven as he came into the room, lowering his eyes coyly. It was just as Itachi had imagined. Actually, a bit better. This was their art, to create together, photographer and model.

"How do you want me?" the blond said archly, a seductive smile gracing his lips.

Itachi came up behind him, lifting the blond hair out of the way to kiss his lover's neck. "So many ways," he replied. "But for now, spread out on the bed will work."

Deidara chuckled, crawling onto the bed. He turned and looked at the raven, catching his eye before rolling onto his back and propping himself up on his elbows. The kimonos draped open across his body, layers of colors contrasting against the pale skin and black and white design on his chest. His eyes were full of dark desire as he gazed at the raven. Itachi was tempted to just throw all his plans to the wind and take him right then and there. Their relationship took work – sometimes a lot of work – but moments like these made everything worth it. And it was moments like these he wanted to remember forever.

So he merely walked over, gazing into the blond's eyes as he laid him out on his side, pulling the bottom of the black kimono over his legs so that the clouds showed. The top gaped open, showing the pattern painted on the blond's chest. He let the blond's head rest on an outstretched arm, the silk of the sleeve laid out smooth before him, Deidara's long hair arrayed behind his face. He gave the blond a matching fan to hold in his other hand, ensuring his modesty.

"You look amazing."

Deidara smiled. "Show me, yeah."

So Itachi went and took the camera, adjusting the lighting just so, and started to take pictures of his lover. Every so often he would move Dei around. The blond was a pro at holding poses, especially when his curiosity was piqued by wanting to see the final outcome. As they went along, Itachi mused that perhaps the next time some makeup would be in order – not much, just a bit. Maybe some matching lipstick, some eyeliner. When they were in high school Deidara had been like a princess, cast in girls roles in their school plays. He had made a very convincing girl. Not that a girl was what Itachi wanted.

They transitioned, taking off the outer kimono. He carefully laid it out on a rack to the side; Dei was picky about his clothes. They'd transformed the walk-in closet in this room to a space that housed most of the kimonos and other traditional garb Itachi bought. When he turned back, he looked at the white kimono critically, hoping it was thick enough that the red didn't show through. It was perfect, even under the lights.

The white was even paler than the blond's skin, and the red berries matched the red in the Uchiha fan on his chest. It was just as he had imagined it. He started to get lost in the art of the pictures, pulled in by the look in Deidara's grey eyes. He laid him out on his back, letting the red of the inner kimono make a bright line between the body paint and the white silk. He could feel his desire growing, especially when Dei shifted unexpectedly and the kimono fell open right as he was taking a shot, exposing the pale skin all the way down. He narrowed his eyes at the blond but couldn't help tracing the red line of silk down to pale golden curls.

The transition to the red kimono was faster. Dei got up on his knees, all shyness and false modesty as his lashes shadowed his eyes. Itachi watched as he raised a hand, tracing the inner edge of the red silk wrapped around his body, slowly pulling it open. Itachi took one last shot then put the camera to the side, unwrapping his lover and tossing the kimono to the side to be dealt with later. Deidara laughed at his impatience, pulling him in to a kiss that was far less chaste, letting his hands run down to tug at the raven's red pants.

They wrestled around on the bed for a bit until Deidara ended up on top, pressing down. Itachi let his fingers grope his lover's ass. He enjoyed this position very much, it let him see everything. Deidara wiggled, crawling up to search for the lube they kept hidden underneath the side of the bed. He gasped as the raven took the opportunity to suck his cock, going down on his elbows before trying to concentrate enough to grab the slim plastic bottle. Itachi took it from him, patting his ass to keep him in that position as the raven spilled the liquid onto his fingers, pushing against his lover's entrance as he sucked greedily on his cock.

Finally Deidara had enough. Itachi let him push back; watching as he sat behind the raven's straining erection. He had a hard time choosing between watching the look of concentration on the blond's face or watching Dei's hands as they stole the lube back from him and wrapped themselves around his cock, twisting and squeezing in just the right way. Finally he made a noise of impatience that was met with a smirk. He grabbed the blond's ass, pulling him forward so that their cocks rubbed together. Deidara relented, positioning himself above the raven then slowly sliding down, guiding himself onto Itachi's cock. They both groaned in satisfaction.

He kept his hands on the blond's hips, guiding him with soft touches, eyes wide as they watched the way his lover rose above him. This was why he loved this position, because he could see everything. Every look on the blond's face. Every way his hair flew around, the way he arched his back, the way his cock dripped in pleasure – especially when Deidara found just the right angle, crying out repeatedly as Itachi slammed his hips up and drove into that soft wet delicious heat.

He wanted it to last forever. It didn't, but there was joy in that too – joy at the pleasure he brought to the blond, at the pleasure washing through his body, at the way they were joined so perfectly. He never closed his eyes, tugging at the blond's hips to pull his attention back down. Deidara's grey eyes were hooded with pleasure as he looked down. He was captured in that gaze, they both were.

Suddenly forever was too short and too long at the same time. He needed everything. Without warning, he flipped their positions, driving into the startled blond. Pale hands came up to grip his arms as he hooked the blond's legs over his shoulders, increasing the pace. He loved the look of helpless desire building in the depths of those eyes, and angled his hips just right to make sure every thrust brought Deidara closer. He drank in every gasp, every soundless word, every utterance of pleasure from Dei's flush lips. Words that were said only for him. Skin that was shown only to him. A body that wrapped around him and only him, now and forever, whenever and however he wanted, they wanted, always. He pushed down for a kiss as the pleasure finally crested, smothering the cry of completion wrenched out of the blond and shuddering as he finally came inside his blond, marking him deep.

He collapsed beside him, pulling out. Deidara pulled him close for a long, relaxed kiss. Itachi reached down to grab a pillow and slid one side under his lover's head, carefully lifting the blond hair out of the way. Then he lay down and embraced his lover. They watched each other, a tangle of limbs and dark and light, talking without words until they sank into sleep.

. . .

Naruto glared at Sasuke as they exited the elevator. Sasuke smirked, but pulled his hand back. He was satisfied just watching the Uchiha symbol on the back of the blond's shirt as they went to the suite Naruto was sharing with Sakura.

"So we have some time?" the raven asked casually, eyeing a perfectly-formed ass only slightly hidden by the fall of a too-big white t-shirt.

"Yeah, she wanted to go see Hachiko – think Kakashi's been feeding her stories about his dogs again. One's about to have puppies and she was looking for names."

"Hn."

"That doesn't mean we have time to do any funny stuff though," he said, sticking his tongue out at Sasuke as they entered the suite.

Sasuke followed him into his bedroom, pushing him down on the bed and kissing him thoroughly.

The blond struggled ineffectually against him, moaning as the lips attached themselves to his neck. "Sasuke – Sasuke really, we don't have time, and I'm all sweaty and dirty!"

The raven chuckled. "So we take a shower?" he said, gazing down at the beautiful sight beneath him.

"We don't have time, seriously. I've got to get packed if we're taking everything over to your place – it was hard enough to get Sakura to agree to us meeting her at the airport tomorrow instead of making me come back here tonight. Then I've got to get showered and dressed, and we have to go over to your place so you can get showered and dressed, and then meet everyone for ramen before the concert."

Sasuke groaned. "I can't believe you talked us into Ramen again."

"It's a national delicacy!" the blond said, hopping up and grabbing his suitcase.

Sasuke lay back and watched him, smiling as he saw the blue shirt and orange wife beater that were the first things he'd taken off the blond. "Only you would consider ramen to be a national delicacy, dobe."

Naruto scowled at him. "Lies!" He looked around to make sure he hadn't missed anything, and then started stripping out of his clothes.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "You seriously expect me to not do anything?"

"Why, like what you see, teme?" Naruto said, posing in just his underwear.

"Wondering if we have any Bon Jovi around, actually."

Naruto chuckled, tossing his underwear at the raven before stepping into the bathroom.

"Sure you don't want company?"

The blond poked his head out, saying, "No time. Besides, then you'd have to put on dirty clothes over a clean body, and that's never fun."

"True, but it'd be worth it," Sasuke muttered, frowning as he heard the sound of water from the bathroom. Sighing he picked up Naruto's pants and folded them, stuffing them in the side of the luggage. He picked up the white shirt and grinned, folding it and sticking it in alongside the underwear before zipping up the bag. A little something for Naruto to remember him by.

His heart ached when he thought of being apart from the blond. He hated the thought of the blond leaving, was seriously contemplating just kidnapping him and not letting him leave the next day. Then, he sighed. He'd just have to go in and talk to Itachi and figure something out on Monday. Shaking his head at the sounds of so-called singing rising above the water in the shower, he wondered to himself if it was all just too crazy.

At the sight of a beautiful blond wrapped in only a towel, water still dripping from his hair, Sasuke concluded that even if it was crazy it was worth it. He sighed. "Hurry up and get dressed before I make you take another shower."

Naruto smiled and walked over, kissing him lightly then protesting as Sasuke grabbed the towel. He grinned as Sasuke used it to rub his hair dry, and then swatted him on his ass so he'd go over to the clothes laid out for the evening. Definitely crazy, Sasuke mused. But he'd take this kind of crazy anytime.

**... . . . ... . . . ... . . . ...**

**hollowsmile - nah, not quite. She has other ideas for Naru-kun.**

**Afria - awww, but you *heart* me even if I'm a meanie, right? It will be revealed :) I'm glad you liked the bodypaint bit (I've always liked that type of decoration myself), hopefully the fullness of why Itachi did it was yummy too. Hina and Kurenai's bit will come quite a bit later; some of this stuff is setup. Hopefully you'll forgive me. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!**

**akiraoniichan - glad you like them. I'm enjoying the ItaDei part quite a bit (obviously, though the rest of the story won't be nearly as ItaDei heavy). Kakashi & Sakura have a different type of relationship here, so less teacher/student oddities. Glad you like the SasuNaru :) they're darling, and they get along so easily sometimes. Not sure about the "arch" business, but the other elements all have important parts to play. Hope you enjoyed!**

**Take care peeps :) Oh, and btw, the black one isn't supposed to be totally akatsuki like, just kinda hinting - did that come across? Anyways, ja ne!**


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character.**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, smuty smut smut, language per usual, kinkyness, bit of an angsty Sasuke, etc.**

**A/N: For those who are interested, I've started posting the sidefic to this that explores earlier days in Itachi and Dei's relationship, as well as some things about Sasuke and Shikamaru and some loose ends I may be mean about and not tie up in this fic. It's called "When All Is Said And Done"... and if anyone spots any continuity issues, I'd be vv grateful. Thanks!**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^**

**...**

Naruto felt fidgety. He paced a bit, then turned and looked at himself in the mirror above Sasuke's dresser. Hopefully his outfit wasn't too over the top. He thought the pieces worked well together.

Sasuke, Sakura and he had spent the afternoon at Yoyogi Park looking at the musicians and browsing the flea market, and he'd picked up a thick titanium chain necklace. It had an electric-blue swirl pendant hanging off of it; Sakura said that it brought out his eyes. He wore it with a skintight black fox basketball jersey with rust-colored accents under had a loose fluorescent orange fishnet overshirt. He ran his fingers through the big holes in the fishnet, tugging down the long sleeves. Other people might complain about orange, but he thought it looked hot against his tan skin. It would look even better if the concert used black lights.

He wore tight black pants underneath that he knew showed off his ass to perfection. The long fishnet shirt would do little to detract from that sight. Electric blue suspenders hung from the waist of the pants. He sat down on the bed, thinking about his black boots. He'd laced them up with bright orange laces. All in all, he thought it was a great outfit. He wondered what Sasuke would be wearing.

The raven had made him hide his eyes when they got back to the apartment so he couldn't see the outfit. Now, the bastard was taking forever in the bathroom – probably to get back at him for being so stubborn at the hotel. Naruto checked his watch. Honestly, they had more than enough time. He just didn't want to be late for dinner. Sakura was already showing some signs that she was peeved with him, and that was never good.

He sighed, rolling over onto his stomach and looking out the window. He needed Sakura in a good mood, if there was any chance of her agreeing to what he was going to propose to her early next week. The thought hit him that, if what he asked did go through, it would be the first time they'd really been apart. Not that he spent every waking moment with her, but Sakura had been in his life just about every day for forever. To think of leaving her, for a guy he had just met – that was a sobering thought. But he couldn't deny that the way he felt here, now – it was like something that had been missing from his life was finally in place.

And then, there was Jiraiya. That reminded him – he hadn't heard anything from the old coot. Or from Ino, who was supposed to check on him and then get back with a report. Naruto frowned, standing up so that he could get to his phone – and then was totally distracted by the sight in the doorway.

. . .

Sasuke smirked. He could tell from Naruto's face that he had made the desired impression. Having the dobe block his advances at the hotel had left him a little snitty, so he decided to pull out all the stops with his outfit for the evening.

He had on a black button-down shirt, decorated with a grey and white design that looked like some abstract digital mountainscape. Red embroidered tomoes swirled randomly around the design, especially near the bottom. He liked the shirt a lot because it was reversible; the inside was black on red. Tonight, he wore it over a wife beater with thin black and white stripes. The black jeans he wore underneath were a perfect fit.

That wasn't all, though. He'd broken out the glowing red hair gel in his medicine cabinet, and used it to decorate the black spikes of his hair. He'd even used black eyeliner to emphasize his eyes. At the moment, he had a bottle of black nail polish in his hands. His intention was to look like sin incarnate – and from the look on Naruto's face, he had succeeded.

"How much time do we have, do-be?" he asked, entering the room and nonchalantly sitting down on the edge of the bed.

"What?" Naruto said, still in shock.

"Time?"

"Oh, um," the blond replied, pulling out his phone and flipping it open. Sasuke chuckled internally, glancing over at the clock on the dresser. Plenty of time.

"Enough," Naruto said, a look of concentration on his face.

"Oh, good, I'll have time to paint my nails." Sasuke opened the bottle and started in on his left hand, examining it before moving onto the other hand.

Naruto sat down near him, watching him intently. "Hey, Sasuke…"

"Hmm?" The raven looked over, enjoying the look in the blue eyes of his lover as they traced down his outfit.

"Um, since we have some time," the blond said, leaning close and caressing his knee. The look in his eyes left little to no doubt about what he was trying to suggest, but Sasuke wanted to draw things out a bit. Cruel, possibly, but not terribly so.

"I thought you said we didn't have any time for any funny stuff, Naruto," Sasuke said teasingly. "Besides, my nails need time to dry."

"But, Sasuke…" the blond said, resting his head on the raven's thigh and looking up at him piteously. He stroked the other denim-clad thigh, lifting his chin to show off the marks on his neck. Sasuke looked down at him, wondering if he'd over thought things with the nail polish. Screw teasing the blond, at the moment he wanted his hands all over that succulent body, even if it was half-covered in garrish orange fishnet. After all, there was no guarantee he'd have another chance at this. As he watched, the blond's gaze trailed back down until it watched the bulge growing within the raven's jeans.

Sasuke frowned for an instant. Only one more night. One more night to have him. There was no way he was going to let that happen. The resolve built within his mind, but he didn't say anything. He was sure Naruto felt the same way about him that he felt about the blond, what they had didn't need words.

He had him tonight, that much was for sure. And, he had him right now, all lusty and hot, practically begging for it in his lap. He shifted his eyes to his fingernails, blowing on them lightly, trying to ignore his body's reaction to the blond's close proximity.

"What is it, dobe?" he said, lowering his voice to that smoky register that he knew the blond had a weakness for.

Naruto swallowed, and his fingers walked up the raven's thigh towards his zipper. "What if I just..."

Sasuke smirked. "You seem to have forgotten how to use complete sentences."

The blond scowled up at him. "Bastard," he said, squeezing the raven's erection through the jeans.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes, and something snapped inside. "Suck me," he said, shifting around on the bed so that he sat with his back against the headboard, one leg on either side of the blond. Naruto gave him a dark look, lashes hiding some emotion that the raven couldn't read. There was an edge between them tonight that he didn't fully understand. It reminded him of that first night at the club. A part of him wanted to pull back, say something kind – but then the blond was unzipping his pants and pulling them down partway, exposing his cock to the cool air momentarily before engulfing it with his mouth.

The raven hissed, arching his back, wanting to twine his fingers in those golden spikes. Wanting to thrust all the way into that burning wet softness. Suddenly, the nail polish seemed like a really bad idea. He closed his eyes as the blond sucked hard on the head of his cock, flicking his tongue against the underside then playing with his slit in a way that drove the raven wild. He forced his eyes back open and looked down, meeting the look of challenge in Naruto's eyes, watching spellbound as he sucked the raven's cock in deeper and deeper. He had a bit of trouble for a minute, and Sasuke wanted to tell him not to worry – but then he moved his head and there was the incredible feeling of being swallowed the blond's throat.

Everything went hazy for a minute, and then he looked back down. Naruto's eyes looked like they were watering just a bit. Suddenly nail polish didn't matter at all. Sasuke reached down and stroked the blond's hair, patting his shoulder with the other hand. "Don't force it," he whispered.

Naruto pulled back a bit, reacting to the change in his expression. The edge between them melted away, at least for the moment. Sasuke felt like his heart was breaking, even as the one who had stolen that heart was with him, looking up at him with tenderness, making love to him with his mouth. He looked away out the window, feeling all the fears he'd been pondering the day before come crashing down on him. The blond squeezed his thigh, pulling his attention back down to the one who was with him now. No matter what happened in the future, he had his blond here with him in this moment. He'd make the most of it.

They were only a few minutes late to dinner.

. . .

Deidara leaned back against his lover, totally sated. Steam rose off the water around them. He loved their bathtub, it was huge and comfortable and absolutely perfect for cuddling in.

Itachi hugged him close, nibbling his neck lightly. They'd washed off all of the body paint. The only traces were a few red patches that would fade before long. The blond let his fingers trace over his lover's arms, resting his head against one strong shoulder.

"I wonder how Sasuke and Naruto are doing," the blond mused.

He was rewarded by a sharp nip. He pinched Itachi's arm in response.

"Thinking about men other than me is forbidden," Itachi murmured, gently licking the bite.

"Don't be stupid, yeah. Like I'd even have the energy after today."

The raven made a pleased noise in the back of his throat, and went back to his preoccupation with the blond's neck.

"Naruto's going back to the states tomorrow."

"Hn."

Deidara decided to try a different track, since he was feeling the beginnings of something stirring behind his back. He wanted at least a couple of minutes of serious conversation about this. "How do you like Naruto?" he asked.

Itachi paused, resting his chin in the blond's shoulder. "I like him a lot."

"He's good for Sasuke."

The raven was silent for a moment, and Deidara twisted to look at his face. The black eyes that met his gaze would have given nothing away to a stranger, but Dei was no stranger.

"You have something planned, don't you," he said accusingly.

The raven smirked and pulled him back down, ghosting a breath against his ear and nibbling on the lobe. Deidara shivered.

"Quit trying to distract me," he said, voice not quite as serious as he wanted it to be. "What are you planning? Tell me."

Itachi chuckled, letting his hands wander down the blond's torso. "Maybe later."

Deidara moaned as one hand tugged on the inside of his thigh, pulling his leg up and over the ravens. "Are you going to let Sasuke know? You know how he hates – oh – scheming."

The blond cursed as he felt himself melt under the hands that knew all of the places to touch in just the right ways.

"Maybe later," Itachi said, lifting a hand to cup the blond's chin and turn his face for a kiss.

"Tell me now," Deidara whispered, pouting against the kiss.

"Other things to do now."

The blond twisted in Itachi's arms, straddling him and looking down with mock seriousness. Then he sighed. "You're insatiable."

Itachi looked up at him lazily, letting his hands wander up and down the blond's back. "Yep. You like it." He let fingers circle lower, squeezing the blond's ass, fingertips teasing as they traced between the cheeks.

Deidara could feel his heart beat faster. "Maybe," he said, leaning over to kiss his lover, hooking his feet over Itachi's legs for better leverage. Itachi just scooted lower in the tub, pulling the blond close so he could nibble his way down to a succulent nipple. Deidara kissed the top of his head and pressed the drain button on the side of the tub. He'd find out what he wanted to know later. Probably. At some point. At the moment, Itachi was right – there were definitely other things to think about now.

. . .

Naruto's eyes widened as they walked up to the concert hall. It was decorated with bright pastel colors and images of fruit. A statue of children playing sat in front of the entrance, and between it and the building quite a few people were gathered, all dressed up in unique costumes. Most of them had on some combination of black and bright fluorescent colors.

Shikamaru was waiting by the statue with a bored look on his face, cigarette in hand.

"Where's your date?" Sasuke asked him as after they walked up.

The brunet made a face. "Busy."

"Turning down a chance to go to a concert with Sakura?" Sasuke teased. Naruto looked at the brunet curiously. His – well, he had no idea if the brunet was straight or not, so significant other – liked Sakura? He didn't say anything, though.

"Family issues."

Sasuke frowned. "I thought we took care of all that."

Shrugging, the brunet put out his cigarette then tossed it into a nearby trash can. "Yeah, well, you know how it goes. Tonight is maybe about business things anyhow, and so –"

"Ah, yeah, not nearly as much fun."

"I'll have to come back and meet this mystery person," Sakura said.

Shikamaru just nodded, and then looked them over critically. He chuckled. "You all will fit right in."

Naruto smiled, licking his lips. He was still trying to figure out if he preferred the taste of Sasuke to that of ramen. He glanced over at the raven, who was doing a great impersonation of sex on legs. He had on boots very similar to Naruto's, though the blond hadn't been able to talk him into finding something neon red to lace them up with. He was still the hottest thing around, maybe only second to Naruto himself, though the blond was beginning to regret the blue suspenders. Sasuke just seemed to enjoy tugging on them too much, trying to lead him around. The raven was such a control freak sometimes.

Sakura had decided that she wanted to push the boundaries of outrageous, which was hard to do. She had on black Mary Janes, black and hot pink striped hose, and a black and pink plaid miniskirt with a black lace petticoat. Her shirt was a pink frilly concoction under a tight black PVC bustier. She had a black velvet choker tied around her neck, and her hair was in a bun decorated with black chopsticks with hot-pink beadwork dangling from the ends. It was way too much pink for Naruto, but it was neat to see her having so much fun with her clothes. He bet at least some of them were new acquisitions, too.

There were definitely outfits crazier than hers out there, though, Naruto thought as they made their way through the crowd to a side door. Shikamaru waved a pass at the guard and they were let in without a hitch.

"I was able to get us tickets in the front row, and backstage passes for after the concert," Shikamaru said.

"That's pretty good for short notice," Sasuke said.

"Short notice?" Shikamaru replied, raising an eyebrow at his boss. He chuckled, and then said, "It's one of Sasori's gigs. Not a problem at all."

"Nice having friends in show business."

Naruto nodded in agreement, realizing more and more how lucky they'd been to get an in to Japan with these people.

They made it to their seats just before the crowd of fans was let inside. Sasuke pulled Naruto close, and whispered in his ear. "Sasori is one of Itachi and Deidara's old friends. He runs a talent agency along with his cousin Kankuro."

Naruto nodded, frowning to himself. Kankuro. That name sounded familiar. Maybe it was a common name?

The volume level of the crowd soon made any attempt at further conversation impossible, so they just waited next to the seats. Some of the other fans came up and crowded the stage, impatient for the band to arrive. Security made sure they didn't get too close, however. It seemed like there were more girls than guys there, though he definitely did see some guys.

Suddenly, the lights came down. Around them, everyone started clapping and stomping their feet. The girls started squealing in anticipation. Naruto felt Sasuke's arms snake around him and felt grateful – no one was pushing, yet, but it was still nice to feel secure.

The lights came up with a shower of sparks and the beat of a drum that grew faster and faster. The lead singer was a girl dressed mainly in black – tight black top, black leather fingerless gloves, thigh-high black combat boots, and short tight black leggings. The shirt was ripped all over, showing a variety of fluorescent colors. Her black hair was done up in a handful of twisted bun-like things with the hair sticking straight up, secured with fluorescent bubblegum hair ties. She stood still for a minute until the drum count reached eight, then launched right into a quick screamy little song, singing with astonishing ferocity as she jumped around the stage. Something about "welcome to the color of your darkness" – he had trouble understanding it all, especially at that speed. The beat was catchy, though.

He glanced over at the drummer and did a double take. That looked a lot like Shin, if he remembered correctly – though the pale hair was streaked with a rainbow of fluorescent colors, and he was sporting round black glasses. If that was Shin – sure enough, he looked over at the guy running the keyboard, and blinked in surprise. He'd know that crazy hair anywhere. And those glasses. No fluorescents for him, though the keyboard did light up. If Shin and Shino were here, then that must mean Kiba was here as well. He squeezed Sasuke's arms. He hadn't expected to introduce them this quickly, but so much the better.

The guitarist was a guy with a crazy sheaf of hair as well, and sported the same all-black clothes as the other men in the band.

After a few songs, the lights went down as well. The guitarist kept playing a quick little riff, and then started jazzing things up with the synth from Shino's keyboard. After a bit, the drummer joined in as well, and they played a pretty rippin little number. It morphed into something with a deeper beat and the lights came up in time to see the singer stalk back out onto the stage.

This time, her hair was down. Bright red streaks shimmied in her hair, and she wore a skirt that was little more than long strips of red and black cloth held together at her waist by a chain belt. She'd changed into a short little black t-shirt with a red smiley face on the front. She started to sing again, this time slow enough that Naruto could make out the words.

_Your love is merely chasing dreams  
__Of who you think I am  
__So let it burn along with you  
__You stupid bleating lamb_

_I don't care if you sacrifice  
__I don't care if you cry  
__If you can't face this simple truth  
__Just go ahead and die_

She actually had a pretty good voice, especially when she wasn't trying to scream every other syllable. Of course, it wouldn't be a complete song without some screaming, as he saw as she built to the chorus. It wasn't too bad though. The effect of head banging with long fluorescent hair in flashing lights was interesting, and she did have a certain charisma.

Overall, the music was pretty dark, but with this punk energy that kept it from being depressing. The people around evidently got into it pretty hardcore. There were a few more songs, another costume change to black and neon blue, and then of course the obligatory encore after everything had played out. It wasn't his favorite musical style but he could see where using the singer as a model had potential.

He watched Sakura out of the corner of his eye. He could tell she was sizing up the singer's clothes, and those of the rest of the band. He wondered if she had recognized Shin and Shino. Probably. He doubted she was really paying attention to anything besides ideas of how to redress them more effectively.

By the end of the concert, he was hot and sweaty in spite of trying to dress for the crowd. Sasuke was probably even worse, though. They waited for the people around the stage to thin out a bit before Shikamaru motioned for them to follow him backstage.

. . .

Sasuke followed the blond backstage. The concert really had not been his favorite type of music. It was annoying and loud and only marginally better than most of the crap put out by the music industry, in his opinion. Still, it was better – at least Sasori believed in letting musicians try and write their own things once in a while, and he hadn't minded the instrumental pieces that went on while the singer was offstage.

They were led into a long thin room with mats on the floor and a small seating area with a couple of couches and chairs around a low coffee table. The band members were still getting out of their costumes, so only a few people were milling around. One of the guys seated around the table looked up curiously when they entered, and then blinked his eyes in amazement.

"Naruto? Sakura?" he asked, jumping to his feat and coming to them. He hugged Sakura and high-five Naruto.

"Kiba! Dude, Ino told me you were over here for a concert, I had no clue it was this one!" the blond exclaimed excitedly. Sasuke looked the new man over. He was kind of shaggy looking, with brunet hair and a sharp grin. The raven poked Naruto unobtrusively.

"What?" Naruto asked, looking back. "Oh! Kiba, this is Sasuke. Sasuke, Kiba. Kiba's one of my oldest friends and Jiji's editor. Um, and Sasuke's…" The blond paused, looking the raven up and down, and then smirked. "Sasuke's with the company we came over to meet with and he's um, new."

Both Sasuke and Kiba raised an eyebrow at this, and Naruto just shrugged. Sakura snickered at him, and then was called away by Shikamaru when the singer and guitarist came out. Naruto followed when he saw the the keyboardist and the drummer, leaving Sasuke with Kiba. They sized each other up a moment, then started walking towards the others, hanging back far enough that they didn't have to be involved in the blond's overly animated conversation.

"So, you're 'new', eh?" Kiba said finally.

"Hn."

The brunet frowned. It looked like his gaze was on the evidence displayed around Naruto's neck. "Well, just don't hurt him," he muttered, turning to glare at the raven. "He's not just some quick fuck."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. Whatever he was going to reply was cut off by a statement from a newcomer to the room, who took one look at Naruto and said, "Hey, dickless."

Naruto sputtered for a moment, and then said, "Sai! You jerk! I told you to stop calling me that!"

Sasuke frowned to himself, looking at the pale black-haired man. Sai? Where had he heard that name before?

**... . . . ... . . . ... . . . ...**

**Rizember - I no pay medical bills, joo read you bleed! hopefully :) *hart hart* :)**

**Afria - yay! I'm glad you liked the ItaDei... I'm having a hard time keeping my hands off them more, but theres's so much SasuNaru to play with these last few hours... mwuhaha. And I like putting your name down there too! Reviewers are AWESOME! They make me smile and squeal and bounce happily!**

**hollowsmile - we can only wait and seee...**


	19. Chapter 19

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character.**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, smuty smut smut, language per usual, kinkyness, bit of an angsty jealous Sasuke, etc.**

**A/N: Ok, so somehow, the Kiba I meant to write and the Kiba that made himself known are two quite different people. I'm pleased, though. Oh, and btw, if pictures of cars can be considered pr0n... check my profile. O.O**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^**

**...**

"Hey Sai, didn't expect to see you here of all people," Sakura said.

The pale man glanced at her. "Hey, Ugly."

Sasuke watched as the pinkette narrowed her eyes. "Interesting to see you here. Does this mean we get to see another exhibition of your pro dancing skills?"

Sai looked down his nose at her and opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by the drummer patting him heartily on the back. "I see you two are getting along as well as usual," the man said.

Sasuke didn't pay much attention to the introductions that followed because he had remembered exactly where he'd heard the name Sai before. He gazed critically at the pale man. He didn't look a thing like Sasuke, unless you thought all Asians looked alike. The only similarity was their hair color and eye color. He remembered that Naruto had disagreed with Sakura when she'd compared the two of them, but it didn't help matters much. The raven had a sudden desire to pull his blond closer to him, marking his territory before these strangers. He held back, though. Naruto was laughing. Sasuke felt almost forgotten for a minute, not sure how to react. So he just watched, trying to look bored.

"Stop speaking so much American," the singer chided, running her fingers through her long hair before switching to Japanese. "Honestly, they're here in Japan, they should be respectful and speak the right language. Why do I have to deal with some stupid slutty foreigner for, anyways? I'm tired."

The man who seemed to be the band's manager came forward and put his hand on her shoulder, sighing apologetically at the others. Sakura, fortunately, looked clueless at the insult. Shikamaru was leaning forward and translating for her – carefully.

"Why don't a few of us go to the practice room and talk about things in private?" the manager said, in Japanese for the benefit of his singer. The drummer trailed after Sakura and Shikamaru as they followed the manager and singer to a door at the end of the room.

"Kin's kind of a bitch, if you hadn't noticed," Kiba said in fluent Japanese. The guitarist glowered at him at looked like he was going to say something, but stalked off to the other end of the room.

Naruto just chuckled. "You'd know all about bitches, wouldn't you Kiba."

Kiba chuckled, motioning to suggest they return to the seating area. "In case he hasn't told you, Uchiha-san, my family runs a dog-breeding and training service. You may have heard of it, Inuzuka Corp?"

Sasuke nodded, sitting and pulling the blond down next to him. Naruto squeezed his hand then continued talking animatedly to the keyboardist and that other man, Sai. The raven frowned momentarily, and then turned back to the brunet. "Yes, they're actually clients of ours as well."

"Cool, I didn't know that. I don't have much to do with the family business. My sister runs a kennel in San Diego, but that's about it."

"You decided to become an editor instead?"

Kiba chuckled. "I take it from your tone that you know the type of books Goketsu-sensei writes?"

Sasuke smirked. "I may have had a bit of experience."

"Well, growing up around these guys, I found his work to be – shall we say – inspirational?"

"Hn."

"So after going to college, I figured out I could make it into a career. I've handled other Japanese writers for the publisher as well, ones that live on the west coast. But Jiji is the most important one."

"Hey, speaking of, Kiba," Naruto said, turning to them suddenly, "Have you heard anything from him about plans for the weekend? I haven't heard from him for a few days."

Kiba's eyes widened. "No way, really?"

Sasuke watched the brunet curiously. He'd never really seen someone turn that shade before, it really was almost a sickly green.

"Yeah, Ino was supposed to check the house and give me a call, but she had to work today so there's no telling when she'll have the chance. I thought about putting a trace out on his credit cards, but..."

"Yeah. I'm sure he's ok," Kiba replied, looking anything but sure. "We'll be home tomorrow anyhow, right?"

"True," the blond said. "You're going home tomorrow?"

"Yeah, my flight leaves at 5:20, American Airlines. You?"

"Same! Hey, that means we can both harass Sakura on the flight back. I wonder if our seats are close together."

"Probably, if not I bet we can talk someone into switching," Kiba said.

Sasuke leaned back, zoning out the conversation. It was weird to hear the blond talk about leaving in such an easy tone of voice. He glanced around the room. Sai was walking over towards a fridge in the corner of the room. Sasuke had to admit that the other man was attractive, in a cold sort of way. He let his fingers lightly stroke Naruto's back, wondering what their past relationship was. He knew the jealousy was irrational – knew that, whatever had happened, the blond was with him now – but that didn't make the jealousy go away. Especially since he suddenly wasn't so sure how much of a claim he himself had on the blond.

He was distracted by the sounds of yelling coming from behind the practice room door. Naruto looked over at Shino in alarm. The other man shrugged. "Don't worry about it," he said, "She's just emotional sometimes. I'm sure whatever you guys need, Kinuta-san will talk her into it, especially if Sasori has already agreed to it."

Sure enough, a few minutes after that, the door opened and the group filed out. Kin and Sakura were glaring at each other, but Shikamaru gave Sasuke a small nod as their eyes met. One down, two to go.

The raven tugged at Naruto's hand, interrupting his conversation with Shino. "You about ready to go?"

The blond blinked and glanced around, then looked back at Sasuke. "Yeah, of course."

They stood and said their goodbyes. Sasuke called the driver while watching Naruto finish up one last conversation with the other Americans. He couldn't wait for them to be alone.

. . .

Sasuke was quiet on the ride back to the apartment. Naruto noticed, but didn't say anything. He figured that the raven was probably tired; hanging out with a band didn't really seem like the type of activity that would float his boat - even if he could dress the part seriously well. Naruto took the chance to watch the raven stare moodily out the window, pressing his knee against the other man's legs.

The raven was even quiet in the elevator, though he held Naruto's hand. There was no frantic make out session as soon as they stepped into the apartment door, either. Sasuke just walked into the bedroom, not even bothering to turn on the lights before taking off his black and red shirt and tossing it onto the dresser. He walked over to look out the window.

Naruto came up behind him, hugging him and resting his head against Sasuke's shoulder. "Long night, eh?"

The raven just nodded in reply, squeezing the blond's arms. He looked out across the cityscape for a few minutes. Then, he pulled Naruto around in front of him, looking deep into his eyes. Naruto searched his lover's face. He wished he could decipher the questions that seemed to be locked behind those dark eyes. He raised a hand to the pale skin, tracing down the raven's cheek. A part of him just wanted to say screw it to the flight tomorrow and just stay here in these arms. But he was a grownup, and had grownup responsibilities. Besides, if all worked out right, he'd be back here soon enough.

His gaze lingered on the raven's lips, that mouth that could be so stoic and so expressive at the same time. He leaned towards those lips impulsively, opening to a kiss that the raven was slow to respond to. Then, it was like a dam had burst inside the other man, all his pent up feelings that he wouldn't talk about coming forth from his lips, his hands, and the press of his body against the blond. Naruto found his back pushed back against the cold glass of the window and felt a tremor of uncertainty. He wrapped his arms around the raven's neck, trusting him even as he was ravaged by Sasuke's mouth and hands.

Suddenly the raven turned him around, tearing off the orange fishnet over shirt and unbuttoning his pants. Naruto heard a thud as the pants were pushed to the floor but didn't have a chance to wonder what it was as Sasuke attacked his neck, hands going everywhere. It was all he could do to stay upright. His hands splayed out against the glass and he leaned his forehead against the coolness. Naruto got nervous for a minute when he felt Sasuke pause with his hands on the blond's ass. Surely he'd take a break and get something to prepare him with, right?

His fears were alleviated as the raven evidently came to a decision, pushing Naruto's legs together and pressing his cock between the blond's thighs. Naruto shivered, closing his eyes. Sasuke didn't speak, just held him tight, one hand fisting the blond's cock as he thrust against him, sweat and precum easing the friction against Naruto's soft skin. Their coupling was almost violent, a little scary, but also very hot. But Naruto missed the intimacy. He didn't like being pressed against the cold glass, even if the raven's body was like fire wrapped around him. In this position, it was almost like anyone would do.

Naruto came a few strokes after the raven, but it wasn't really all that satisfying. They both panted, breath heavy. Sasuke clung to him, resting his forehead against the blond's shoulder. His hand strayed down along the blond's inner thigh, wiping their shared essence against his skin. After a minute, the raven kissed his bare shoulder, almost like an apology.

Naruto sighed.

He pushed back gently and the raven stepped away, letting him walk over to the bed. The blond flicked on the bedside lamp and lay down, beckoning the raven to join him. Sasuke looked at him for a moment and then came over, kicking their clothes out of the way. He helped Naruto take off his basketball jersey, and Naruto helped the raven finish stripping out of his own clothes.

Naruto then lay back on the bed, tugging the raven closer. Sasuke curled up next to him, resting his head on the blond's chest. Naruto hugged him. "Better?" he said quietly.

The raven nodded, fingertips tracing down along the tattoo on the blond's stomach.

They shared the quiet for a few minutes, and then Naruto said, "At some point we should probably take another shower."

A shallow grunt was the Sasuke's only reply. Naruto wasn't quite sure what to say after that. He just let his fingers run through the raven's hair. The glow from the gel was finally fading out. He frowned at the smears that it left on his fingers, and then sighed, leaning his head back against the pillows.

Not that he minded cuddling, but it wasn't all that he had in mind for the rest of his last night here with the raven. Sasuke's hand seemed to have something similar in mind, seeing as how it had wandered down from the blond's belly button to his cock, playing with the softened flesh idly. Sasuke-teme didn't really seem to be paying attention to either of them, though. Sometimes the man thought too damn much.

Naruto huffed and turned towards the nightstand, turning to open the drawer and getting out the bottle of lube. Sasuke had raised himself up when the blond twisted beneath him, and looked at him curiously.

"I thought you wanted a shower?" Sasuke said.

Naruto looked at him like he was an idiot. "Well, if we're going to get dirty anyhow, might as well be before as after, right?"

Something in the blond's tone of voice evidently got through to the raven, because he actually looked at him for a moment. Not through him, like it seemed he'd been doing ever since they left the others. But at him. Then, the raven smirked, taking the bottle from Naruto's hands and setting it down before pulling his lover close for a long, deep, kiss.

That was more like it.

. . .

Sasuke had no idea what time they finally got to sleep. They made love slowly and tenderly, then took a shower and soaked in the tub before trying to figure out if anything they had would work for lube underwater. They settled for mouths and hands. Then they went and cuddled on the couch, watching late-night TV and drinking tea, finally ignoring the background noise of the television while they made out until they dozed. Then Naruto woke him up and they went back to the bed, spending hours exploring each other's bodies until they were exhausted and the sun graced the horizon in the distance. The raven was glad his curtains worked on remote control.

They'd woken up briefly a few hours later, Naruto stuffing most of his clothes into the suitcase and pulling out a t-shirt to wear on the flight. Then they crawled back into bed and cuddled, murmuring to each other. Naruto had laughed when Sasuke asked him about Sai. It turned out they'd never been much more than friends.

"Well, we did kiss one time, but we were both drunk and let me tell you, it was awful," were the exact words. Sasuke wasn't quite sure how he felt about it. Then again, he supposed he'd have to go through the same thing whenever the blond found out about certain people in his past. He had started to feel comfortable enough to bring up the subject of the future – but then Naruto had started to doze off again, murmuring for the raven to wake him up in time for the flight. Sasuke had just kissed his forehead, cradling him close. He meant to just spend the next couple of hours watching the blond sleep. He meant to only close his eyes for a second.

When he opened them again and glanced at the clock, his heart stopped. He calculated the time in his head, then shook the blond awake. "Wake up, Naruto!"

Naruto turned over and stretched sleepily in his arms. "Mmm, what, s'ke?"

"Wake up, we overslept. We have to hurry or you're going to be late!"

The blond's eyes snapped open at that comment, and he cursed, scrambling around to find his jeans and underwear and slip on his t-shirt. Fortunately the bags were packed, and it didn't take long for Naruto to get dressed. They raced out the apartment and down to the garage, where Sasuke finally got to show Naruto his baby – and how well he knew how to navigate Tokyo traffic on the way to the airport.

. . .

Kiba sat back in the airport chair, wondering why they could never seem to make the things comfortable. He was surrounded by some other uncomfortable-looking people as well.

Sakura was frowning at her phone as she tried calling Naruto for the fifth time. The blond wasn't picking up. Kiba hadn't ever been terribly close with the pinkette – he was more Naruto's friend – and watching her now, he was glad he'd passed up the chance to date her in high school. The girl was way too high maintenance for his tastes. The way he saw it, it wasn't a huge deal. Naruto was finally getting a piece of ass – or was the piece of ass, Kiba didn't want to think about the details too much. Anyways, good for Naruto, high five and all that. So what if he ran late because of it? It wasn't like there weren't other flights, or that they couldn't afford another plane ticket. They still had some time, anyhow.

The other two people waiting with them didn't quite seem to share his patience. He'd been able to tell right away that the man with the long black hair was Sasuke's brother – they just looked that much alike. He was a bit more stuck up than the younger raven, though he'd been polite, especially when he heard Kiba's family name. He was leaning against a pole keeping an eye on the airport entrance. The blond one had sat down beside Kiba and tried to strike up a conversation, but either they had nothing in common or this Deidara guy was too nervous about Naruto and Sasuke, because the conversation didn't get very far.

So Kiba just broke out his phone and started playing games. Naruto would get there when he got there. No use in spazing out about it.

. . .

The blond in question was currently sitting back in the front seat of a 2002 Toyota Mark IV Supra, wondering in awe why the hell Sasuke hadn't taken him out driving before. The raven obviously knew what he was doing. He drifted through traffic like the other cars were standing still. The blond checked the time and tried to decipher the signs on the way to the airport. He was pretty sure they'd be ok.

Sasuke had called a few minutes earlier to make sure that they would be able to get in at the valet parking. They grabbed the luggage and walked quickly to the baggage check. Naruto was frantic as he searched for his wallet, but the raven was kind enough to pull it out from the side pocket where they'd placed it that morning along with the ticket and his passport.

When they made their way up to the gate, he noticed that Sakura looked furious. Kiba gave him a thumbs up, which he acknowledged with a quick smile before turning to greet Itachi and Deidara. The older blond, not one to stand on ceremony, glomped onto him right there in front of everybody. Naruto couldn't help but giggle. He figured some of the passer-bys were trying to convince themselves that the long-haired bishie was a girl.

"Hope to see you again soon, Naruto-kun," Deidara whispered. He grinned at the other blond as they pulled apart, and then looked around. Kiba was already walking towards the gate lugging his backpack; he'd said a quick goodbye to Sasuke. Sakura was watching him impatiently.

He realized – it was time.

He turned to look at Sasuke. For a minute, they didn't say anything. There was so much he'd meant to say, but hadn't. Now, he didn't know what to say. He glanced around nervously. There was no way anyone would mistake Sasuke for a girl. When he looked back at the raven, the other man huffed and pulled him close, kissing him ruthlessly then hugging him tightly.

"I'll call you," Sasuke said.

Naruto pulled back and nodded, looking into those bottomless dark eyes. "Do. Yeah. I may sleep for a bit when I get home but – yeah. Or I'll call you. I –"

He didn't know what to say next, especially with an impatient pinkette behind him and the loudspeaker announcing that the people for their flight were asked to make their way to the gate because it would begin boarding shortly. He just squeezed Sasuke's hand and pulled back, going though the gate. He kept turning his head every chance he got until Sakura apologetically pulled him around the corner towards their flight.

. . .

Sasuke stared at the corner in disbelief, trying to process what had just happened. He tried replaying it in his mind, tried figuring out how he'd even let what just happened actually happen. He saw Deidara come up beside him out of the corner of his eye, but for once, didn't feel the urge to snap at him. His mind was just blank.

"We slept late," he finally said, even though neither of the other men had asked.

Deidara just nodded. "It happens."

Suddenly the weight of everything he didn't say came crashing down. For a moment he was tempted to go try and find a ticket for that flight – but he knew that there was no way that would work. He knew that was probably the last flight out for the day. He'd appreciated having the extra time to spend with Naruto, but now – he didn't know what to think.

He didn't want to turn around and face Itachi. He could almost feel the disapproval. Uchiha's didn't act that way in public. Uchiha's weren't late to the airport. It didn't matter that the lessons had been drilled into him by his grandfather and not Itachi, a corner of his brain could lay out with crystal clear detail what the older raven would say if opened his mouth on the subject.

He didn't, though. He wouldn't, in public. That was not the Uchiha way either.

Sasuke schooled his expression, trying to pick up the pieces that would let him get through the next few minutes. It was almost impossible. A scornful voice inside his head was starting to recite all the things he should have done, everything he did wrong, everything he didn't say.

He didn't notice the look of concern that crossed Deidara's face as he looked at Itachi, and barely even noticed when Deidara asked, "Hey Sasuke, can I drive your car home?"

"What? Oh, sure," Sasuke said, handing him the valet claim ticket.

He also missed the barely-noticeable look of surprise on Itachi's face as he looked at Deidara. He really didn't notice much of anything, even the times on the ride home when Deidara's crazy driving put his baby in jeopardy, or when Itachi opened the door of his apartment and made sure he was alright before he and the blond left for their house. He just curled up on the bed, looking at the clock and trying to calculate how long it would be before he could give Naruto a call.

He certainly didn't notice the small plastic and metal object under his bed with a flashing red warning light, blinking slower and slower as the battery started to die.

. . .

In an interior room of a small ryokan in southern Japan, the okami checked on the preparations for dinner. Most of the guests had already checked in, they didn't have any more reservations expected. Suddenly, she heard the quick pitter patter of feet in the hall. Then, she heard a quiet huff as the attendant knelt and slid the door open, looking down at the floor until she got her attention.

A boisterous greeting from the reception area revealed the reason for the attendant's arrival. The girl looked up and they shared a wide-eyed glance before the okami walked swiftly but gracefully down the hall to greet the new guests, her attendant following closely behind.

Well, guest, she supposed. The man was older and had a clothing style that she wouldn't dare to comment on, though he had been polite enough to remove his shoes. He looked Japanese. You could never tell these days, though.

She greeted him politely, apologizing for the delay and for the fact that she had missed his reservation.

"It's ok, I didn't make one," the man replied, handing her his passport. He spoke Japanese fluently, though she detected an American accent. "I realize it's unusual to only have one guest," he continued, "so the best room you have would be fine. Do you happen to have mixed-gender bathing facilities?"

The okami blinked, trying to process this. She glanced at his passport. "I'm sorry to say we do not, Goketsu-san," she said. She glanced at the rooms available to make sure which ones were available. "But we do have –"

A loud clanging came from the office to the side of the entryway, and the door slid open to reveal a thin balding man trying to straighten his Yukata. The okami was tempted to make a small face at the disturbance while her guest's attention was drawn elsewhere, but resolved to be a good example to the attendant – even if her husband had chosen to make a rather obvious entrance.

"Goketsu-san? Goketsu-sensei? Goketsu Jiraiya-sensei?" he asked, blinking and putting on his glasses.

The old man grinned heartily, and went over to shake his hand. "Yep, that's the one."

"I have all your books! They've been so helpful!"

Grace and calm under pressure, the okami thought. Even though there was no way she could miss the giggle that was only partially suppressed by her attendant. Evidently, the girl had been just a bit quicker at putting together the identity of their latest guest. She turned to glare at the attendant, who promptly dropped her gaze and apologized. Sighing, the okami sent her to go make sure their best room would be ready to receive their guest – though she had no idea how long it would be before the two men decided to leave that room.

**... . . . ... . . . ... . . . ...**

**Afria - yeah, reviews are awesome. i heart! oh, and there will be more Sai... at some point... in some story...**

**Momoluvsu13 - ^_^ tyty!**


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character.**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, moodyness**

**A/N: Kinda quiet, interludish chapter. The whole time I was writing it, I had "Everyday Forecast" by Gym Class Heroes stuck in my head. Things pick up after this.**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^**

**...**

Sakura looked over at the two men sprawled out beside her. Although she was glad they'd let her have the window seat, it was pretty inconvenient when she needed to get up and they had decided to make an obstacle course with their legs in an effort to be comfortable. She didn't see why they bothered. She knew Naruto could sleep anywhere, and Kiba – well, she figured he wasn't that much different.

She yawned, trying to figure out if it was worth the trouble to try and wake them up or if she should just crawl right over them.

The pinkette smiled down at her best friend, giggling at the sight of the marks on his neck. A thin trickle of drool hung down from his open mouth. It amazed her that he'd finally found someone who adored him, drool and all. She assumed that Sasuke had seen his drool; they'd certainly spent enough time together. It meant she'd spent far more time alone in Tokyo than she intended – but it was alright. She was more than willing to put up with it, if it meant the blond could be happy. She hoped the happiness continued.

She had plans to help in that arena. Even before their visit to Tokyo, she'd been contemplating making a personnel change once the opening of the new branch was finalized. Naruto was her best friend, and she didn't want to be parted from him, but she also knew his talents deserved a bigger challenge than just being her assistant. When it came to Japan, not only did know the language and have the right skill set, but he was also the person she trusted most in the world when it came to her business.

She'd meant to tell him earlier, but then first Kiba was riding home with them (she'd have to call and berate Ino for not letting her know about that) and then she was irked with the blond because he was late. Once they got on the plane, the two boys (men, theoretically, though she wasn't sure they'd earned that title) acted just like boys, to the point where Sakura just sank into her seat and read a book, trying to pretend like she didn't know them.

Eventually, she'd fallen asleep. She'd had lots of practice going to sleep amidst noisy boys. When they were in college, there were nights when she'd crashed out on Naruto's couch while the two of them hashed it out in whatever video game was their current fancy, or watched horror movies with running commentary. If she could sleep through that, she could sleep through anything else they could dish out.

Sakura resisted the urge to find a Kleenex and wipe away the blond's drool, or turn his head in a more comfortable direction. She was positive he'd have a crick in his neck by the time he woke up. She laughed to herself as Kiba shifted in his sleep, foot tapping against the chair in front of him. For all the world, it looked like he was chasing rabbits in his sleep.

The pinkette leaned back in her seat, deciding she could wait a while to stretch her legs. She didn't want to disturb the boys just yet. She turned her head, watching the rise and fall of her best friend's chest as he drooled in his sleep. As well as she knew Naruto, the past few days it was like she'd glimpsed a totally different side to him. Part of her wanted to be selfish and keep him, so that he would always be the one she could call in the middle of the night if she had a bad day, or go and drag to the little ramen place off the freeway they'd found southeast of LA, just to be able to rant about the latest guilt trip her mother had her on.

But as much as she'd had fun with the blond, she hadn't seen him as glowingly happy as he had been the past few days. She could always call him, wake him up in the middle of the night, and interrupt him when he was with Sasuke – she chuckled at that thought. It was the right time for everything to happen.

She'd be losing Jiraiya as well, which had both its advantages and disadvantages – though, truth be told, she enjoyed the old coot. She frowned, remembering that she hadn't talked to him to finish the phone call they'd started a couple days ago. They'd been cutoff in the middle of the conversation, and she wasn't sure he'd really understood what she was trying to ask him about. She shrugged. Surely everything would be fine.

. . .

Sasuke blinked himself awake, and glanced at the clock. It was early evening. He'd fallen asleep.

He stared at the glowing numbers, watching as the minutes flickered by and thinking about his options. Sighing, he rolled over onto his back, pulling one of his pillows to his chest. It still smelled like Naruto. He was tempted to tell the cleaning lady not to wash the sheets when she came by on Tuesday.

He thought about trying to go back to sleep. His stomach growled at him, raising its objection to this idea. He had been known in the past to overrule it, but seeing as how he hadn't had much to eat all day, it would probably be a good idea to eat something.

He thought about cooking. He ran down a list of the ingredients in his cabinets; thinking about the last time he'd thought of making himself dinner. From what he recalled, the prospects weren't promising. Maybe it would do him some good to get out of the apartment.

He rolled over, dropping the pillow reluctantly and padding into the bathroom. He stripped and showered, watching himself in the mirror. His fingers traced down his chest over the marks left by Naruto the first morning they were together. Some of the smaller marks were beginning to fade. He wondered how fast Naruto healed, how long the marks he'd made on that golden skin would last before they disappeared. He turned his back to the mirror, finishing the shower quickly.

He dressed absentmindedly, just throwing on a dark t-shirt and jeans. He walked into the hall, hand pausing over the car keys that Itachi had left out. He wasn't in the mood to drive tonight. Tonight was a walking night. He just wanted to be alone with his thoughts, only the city for company.

He went into the living room and stopped by the stereo, picking up the mp3 player on the shelf and checking the charge. He rarely used it these days. It wasn't the first one he'd ever had – he'd worn that out in high school, played with it until the screen died and he couldn't see the music anymore, then letting it go on random until the hard drive quit as well. This one had most of the same songs on it though. Good walking music. Soft, with a beat slow enough to match his pace. A little hip-hop, a little jazz, some indie and folk, and whatever else he'd picked up along the way.

He grabbed his wallet and keys, slipping his shoes on as he left the apartment. The raven noticed the man who looked up when he entered the apartment lobby, folding his newspaper and saying goodbye to the man he'd been sitting with. Sasuke knew the guard wouldn't bother him. They were good at staying as shadows in the background, only coming out when needed. They should be good – the family paid them enough. He also knew that Shikamaru would most likely hear about his every move that night. At least the brunet wouldn't worry about him. He was suddenly envious of the other man's happiness, that he'd been able to spend years with his soul mate – but that thought quickly passed as well. He didn't want just anyone, and he certainly didn't want Shikamaru's lover – that thought was laughable. Getting along at work was one thing, having to deal with all the complications that arose outside of work – he didn't envy Shikamaru that. No, he was happy it worked for them, though.

He missed his blond. He was probably flying over Hawaii right now, or somewhere in the pacific. He wouldn't arrive until sometime very early the next morning – well, around noon in America. He wondered how difficult the time difference would be. Already, he wanted to call – wished he could call the plane and hear that voice. Wished he could make the blond laugh, or call him bastard, or anything. He frowned. If he had been smart, he would have recorded the blond's voice. He frowned. Did he even have a picture?

Chuckling to himself, he remembered the one picture he did have – but while that was amusing, it wasn't enough. So many things he had forgotten to do. He kicked at a piece of paper on the sidewalk, reminded of the thing of absolute nothing Naruto had squashed on the way home from the club their first night. He looked around for some place to eat and noticed a ramen shop, reminded of the blond again.

He turned away and ducked into a train station, flipping through songs on the mp3 player while waiting for the train to arrive. He was nostalgic at he got off at one of the stops near his old high school. Once in a while, he'd turn his thoughts to the problem of how he would get to see Naruto again. It was like a fresh wound. It was easier to get lost in the music, walking old familiar paths and noticing the little changes in the landscape from when he'd walked there before. He ducked down one of the narrow streets and looked around. The lights were on at the small yakitori restaurant he'd haunted in high school. He wondered if it was the same chef.

Ducking into the door, he immediately felt his eyes sting at the smoke in the air. He sat down at the crowded bar, watching as the chef worked, chopping up a chicken. It was a different guy from the old chef, though they both had the same thick build. When the man looked over at him, Sasuke nodded in recognition. Choji hadn't changed much. The other man raised an eyebrow, then turned back to finish his current order.

After he was done, he wiped his hands on a towel and walked over in front of the raven. "Uchiha Sasuke. I haven't seen you since High School."

Sasuke just nodded.

"Shikamaru said things were going well for you."

"You guys still meet up?"

"Yeah, every few months or so he'll drop by."

"Hn," Sasuke said, trying to think of what else to say. He and Choji hadn't been close in High School; more than once the other boy had made it clear he thought Sasuke was a bad influence on Shikamaru. It had irked Sasuke that the other boy had known Shikamaru before him, even if it was only in nursery school. He got over it. "How's your dad doing?"

"Good, he's normally here. He went on a trip to check out various farms to test their organic vegetables. You should come by and see him sometime."

"Hn." That was about all the small talk Sasuke had in him at the moment, and Choji seemed to recognize this. He'd always been kind.

"Anything in particular you want tonight?"

The raven shrugged. "Whatever is fine."

The other man nodded and turned to the grill, leaving Sasuke to his thoughts. The chicken was hot, and fresh, and spiced to perfection. He let himself be distracted by old memories as he ate the food. The stray thought popped into his mind that Naruto would probably like the restaurant. He wanted to show it to him, wanted to tell Naruto all about who he had been, where he'd gone. Even the stupid stuff. Couldn't be more stupid than what the blond probably got himself into. The raven's lips softened into an almost-smile at the thought, and he paid and left the restaurant.

He walked toward a tiny park hidden amongst the concrete and brick buildings. It was a little overgrown. He leaned on the railing of an old bridge, looking down at the pond it crossed. There were plastic wrappers and old beer bottles in the water. It hadn't changed much. He had.

He checked the time. In four or five more hours, Naruto would be on the ground. He was tempted to stay up, but knew that probably wasn't feasible. He did have work the next day. He'd call him in the morning; he should be home by then. The raven took one last look around and then left the park and headed towards home, thoughts turning from the past to the future.

. . .

Sakura leaned against the door sleepily. She knew she shouldn't be so tired. Naruto and Kiba had shared a cab from the airport after their baggage arrived, since they both lived close to Pasadena. She lived further west, closer to the heart of the city and the shop. She loved LA, but hated the traffic. Her house was smaller and a bit more expensive, but it was worth it.

She finally figured out how to get the key into the door and pushed it open, lifting up her suitcase and setting it inside the door. It was quiet. She frowned. Kakashi should be home by now. Trust him to be late even when they hadn't seen each other for a couple of weeks.

She sighed, rubbing her eyes as she walked down the hall – an act of carelessness that would have made her easy prey for the sneak attack from her lover. If he was home. She sighed in disappointment as no attack was forthcoming, and walked into the bedroom. No surprise there either. Just a note that said he would be back by noon.

"Idiot," she murmured, checking her watch. By Kakashi's time, she still had another couple hours to wait.

She crawled into bed, pouting. Then she had a random thought, and pulled her phone out from her jeans, flipping it open and pressing the second speed dial. There was no answer. Frowning, she hung up and tried again, listening to the rings until it went to voice mail.

She grumbled internally, tossing the phone onto the bed and curling up. She didn't know what was up with Naruto not answering his phone, but it certainly was annoying.

. . .

Naruto sneezed, and then frowned, rubbing his eyes blearily. His body was telling him it should be night right now, and here it was – the sun was still shining high in the sky. He leaned over to pay the cabbie and grabbed his bag, hissing at a random peacock who had decided to make itself at home on his front lawn. He was sure the stupid birds weren't native to the area. He'd heard some story about how they had been released when there was a fire at a pet shop, or maybe that was why there were so many parrots in the area. The peacocks might have escaped from the botanical garden. He wasn't sure. Not that he cared, anyhow.

He opened the door to the house, slipping his shoes off and yelling out "Tadaima" in case the old coot was home. Frowning when he didn't receive an answer, he threw his bag onto the couch and wandered into the kitchen looking for evidence of recent occupation. He scrutinized the dishes in the sink. Some were old – not that it meant much, neither one of them were renowned for their housekeeping skills. The blond yawned, turning to look out on the garden behind the house. The plants looked watered; not that it meant anything since everything was on a timer. There wasn't any evidence of a break in – no blood in the entryway or broken glass in the hall. It was possible that the Jiraiya was just out doing something; it was the middle of the day after all. He yawned again and checked his watch. He bet Sasuke was asleep by now. The blond smiled, imagining the face of sleeping Sasuke. It sounded like a really good idea. He shuffled toward the bedroom. He'd just nap for a little bit, and then he was sure his grandfather would be home.

He grabbed his bag as he passed the living room, deciding to try and unpack at least a few things before curling up for a nap. He sat the bag on the bed, unzipping it and peering inside. Dirty clothes were easy; he pulled them out and tossed them toward the three different hampers next to his closet. He didn't really like doing laundry, but Sakura would kill him if he showed up to work in a pink shirt that was really supposed to be white. For all of her love of pink, there were certain shades she didn't really get along with.

One of the shirts was unfamiliar at first. He pulled it out and grinned, chuckling as he saw the big Uchiha fan on the back. He pulled the shirt close, smelling it to see if it smelled like Sasuke. He sighed. It didn't, it just smelled like him. Pouting, he sniffed it again to determine if it was still capable of being worn.

Deeming that the shirt had passed the sniff test, he tossed it into a chair beside the bed and pushed the bag down onto the floor. Then he looked around. The bed was still unmade. He'd never quite understood the purpose in making up a bed if you were just going to get it all messed up again in a few hours. Sometimes people were so fussy.

As he slid into the sheets, he realized he missed the feeling of being able to wrap himself around Sasuke as he slept. He wondered, briefly, if he'd have any trouble getting to sleep without the other one next to him.

He didn't. But his mind was full of dreams of the raven, making him smile and snuggle deeper into the covers. He only drooled a little bit.

. . .

Sasuke was being a very patient man.

He'd only gone into work a few minutes early. He had said hello to Neji, and inquired about the days appointments. He'd gone into his office and turned on the computer, checking his email and even replying to a couple of the more urgent messages. He was only watching the clock every ten or five minutes.

He checked his voicemail again to make sure that there wasn't a new message from the blond that he'd missed. He double-checked his email. Probably, Naruto had gone home and just gone straight to bed – the raven Smirked when he thought about all the ways he'd tired the blond out the day before.

Finally, he decided it was an alright time to call.

He smiled when he heard his blond's voice after a few rings, and then made a face when he realized that it was just the voicemail. Trust a dobe to try and fake out callers even on his professional phone. He thought about leaving a message. The beep came before he finished the thought, so he just left something generic about hoping Naruto got home safely.

He scowled at the phone after hanging up.

He really wanted to talk to the blond. The idiot was probably still asleep. A slight bit of concern crossed his mind, but it was quickly shaken off. He tried the number again, with the same result. It was annoying, but there was nothing much to do.

He calculated the time difference in his head. It was somewhere around five on the west coast. If the dobe had gotten home around one or two and taken a nap, it might still be a while before he was up.

Sasuke resolved to just call again in a few hours, and turned to the day's work, trying to concentrate and not be distracted by thoughts of a certain delicious little blond who was currently much too far away to do either of them any good.

**... . . . ... . . . ... . . . ...**

**Afria - awww, there will be more Sai later. But, I want to wrap this part up before then :) Sasu isn't too bad... atm. And check your messages? If you're interested...**

**Rizember - cuz, they're silly boys? yeah, they noticed. Dei didn't want him driving home, even, though the blond only has a paper licence really ^_^ **

**Darkloverkitsune - ^_^ I'm glad you like it so much! And yeah, I do like to torture Sasuke (though I love him, he just lends himself out for torture so easily - look at how fast he went to Orochi!) I'm very happy you like the characters, I adore them, really. Even if I'm sometimes sadistic. A little waiting makes things all that much better, right? (So a lot of waiting, should make things even... hmm... maybe I should just keep holding out on them... mwuhaha ^_^)**


	21. Chapter 21

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character.**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, moodyness**

**A/N: Me sleepy. Sorry for anything too cracky ^_^ I wanted humor, since there is no smut!**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^**

**...**

A certain blond was having a really interesting dream about popsicle sticks, biplanes, and the lone ranger that was suddenly interrupted by the sound of a ringing bell. This wouldn't've been unusual under most circumstances, but for some reason, he didn't understand why a bell was ringing in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, especially while the octopus was trying to explain to the lone ranger why they had run out of tea.

The ringing sound kept buzzing in his ear, and finally the blond rolled over and blinked, trying to slam his hand on the alarm. It didn't help. He scowled and finally gave in to opening his eyes, brain attempting to put thoughts together about where the noise might be coming from. Then he opened them wide, almost falling out of the bed in his rush to get to the front door.

The sight that he received when he opened it was not what he was expecting.

"Kiba? What are you doing here?"

"Couldn't sleep. You weren't answering your cell, and I wanted to check up on you and Jiji. Is he home?"

"Eh," the blond said, opening the door and stepping back, "Man, I just woke up, gimme a sec."

Kiba nodded, stepping inside and lightly hitting Naruto in the stomach when he stretched. The blond scowled at him. They searched the house, and then made their way out onto the patio and out towards the long wooden building at the back of the yard that housed Jiraiya's working studio. They found nothing.

Naruto stared at his grandfather's desk. It was neatly in order, without the piles of paper that normally sat on top and beside of it. Naruto hadn't seen it this neat in ages. He looked around the rest of the room, and noticed a similar lack of clutter.

"That's just not natural," Kiba remarked.

Naruto turned around and marched back to the house, going back into the old coot's room and looking around. Little details he hadn't noticed popped up at him. The clothes all picked up. Nothing in the dirty clothes hamper. The bed was made. He opened the closets, but there were so many shirts stuffed in there that it was hard to tell if anything was missing. Something was definitely wrong, though.

He blew past Kiba and walked into the kitchen, opening up the refrigerator. He checked the milk – it was sour, had probably been going sour for the past couple of days. He went out front and checked the mailbox – it was stuffed full of mail. The Sunday paper still lay on the driveway, but that didn't really mean anything – they had a habit of not picking up the papers and just letting the people who did the yard work take care of it. Still, he was worried.

Kiba got out of his way as the blond rushed back into his bedroom, checking his pants for his cell phone. He cursed and attacked his luggage, throwing clothes every which way and growling when he didn't find what he wanted.

"No luck?" Kiba said.

Naruto just glared at him and walked to the kitchen, staring at the list beside the phone. He hated making these calls. Jiraiya was normally good about taking care of himself, but the older he got, the more the blond worried he would go senile and wander off some day, ending up homeless or stuck in some institution and no one would know who he was – especially since his English was rather poor.

Kiba sat down at the kitchen table and watched as Naruto started making his calls. No one at the police station had heard anything about him. They asked if he wanted to file a missing person's report, but he decided to hold off for the moment. He called all the hospitals, but none of them had heard anything.

Naruto was beginning to become frantic. He hung up the phone and looked at Kiba for a minute, then went to the key rack and picked up the keys to his car. The brunet laid a hand on his shoulder.

"What are you thinking now?"

"I don't know! Drive around until we find him, I guess?"

Kiba sighed. "Where?"

Naruto stared at him. He knew he was right. Los Angeles was a huge place; you could drive around for hours and barely even scratch the surface of the places people might go. He cursed, slamming the keys back onto the rack and turning to his friend. "What the fuck do you suggest then? You were supposed to watch him while I was gone!"

Kiba raised his eyebrow. "Dude, he's probably fine. He's not a kid. If he's not in the holding tank or a hospital bed, chances are he's just – well, I don't know, but he's probably fine."

"You aren't helping."

"Fine," the brunet said, thinking for a minute. "Credit cards?"

Naruto cocked his head to one side. "That could work. I don't think I have access to all of them online, but we can try it."

Kiba nodded, and they went into Naruto's bedroom, booting up his laptop. While Naruto was searching for charges, Kiba started making phone calls of his own. Ino apologized for not checking up like she said she would because her shift ran late. None of their other friends had heard anything about it. Naruto tapped his fingers impatiently against the keyboard.

"Anything?" Kiba asked.

"Nope, though he stopped using the debit card a couple days ago. The last charge was to some taxi company."

"What do you want to do now?"

"I have no fucking clue," the blond said, slamming the computer shut with a little more force than was necessary. "All the other cards I can't talk to people until tomorrow morning, and I doubt the taxi place will talk to us until then too. And my cell phone is missing, and – fuck. Sasuke. Fuck, fuck, fuck. This isn't good."

He still felt groggy from the jetlag, even though he'd slept an incredible amount in the past day. His head felt fuzzy.

"I don't know," Kiba said, frowning. "We may just have to wait until tomorrow, and hope that he's ok. I can stay here tonight, and help you check all those places in the morning."

Naruto sighed, and then nodded. "This royally sucks," he said. He was quiet for a minute, and then said "One other odd thing I noticed on the caller id was a bunch of calls from Sakura."

"Hmm. I wasn't able to get her, I bet she and Kakashi are too busy to answer the phone."

Naruto gave a short laugh. "Lucky them." He stood up and stretched, checking the clock. "We can run by the office tomorrow morning on the way to the other places to see if she knows anything."

"Sounds good." The other man stood, looking a bit worried. "Hope you sleep ok."

"Me too," Naruto said, glancing over at him. "You mind sleeping on the couch? I'd offer Jiji's bed, but – "

"Ah, yeah, couch is fine. Let me steal a t-shirt or something tomorrow too, cool?"

"Sure. Everything else – well, you know where it is."

"Yeah."

"Sleep tight."

Naruto nodded and sat on his bed, watching as Kiba closed the bedroom door to give him some privacy.

. . .

Sasuke checked the clock. Three in the afternoon. He'd been waiting patiently all day. Once he got focused on a project, the time passed more quickly, but still not quickly enough. He checked his email and his messages, but the dobe hadn't left him anything. He grumbled to himself then picked up the phone and dialed again.

Still no answer. He frowned, tapping his fingers against the desk, and then leaned forward to press the intercom button.

"Hyuuga-san?"

"Yes?"

"Can you check and make sure that the plane the representatives from the Sakura Corporation were on landed safely, please?"

"Yes."

He leaned back, looking out the window at the skyline while he waited. He was starting to feel uneasy. Why wouldn't the dobe pick up? He'd told Naruto he'd call – how long did the idiot need to sleep for, anyhow? Sasuke hadn't tired him out that badly.

"Uchiha-san?"

"Yes?"

"The plane landed safely about ten hours ago. Is everything alright?"

Sasuke frowned, considering his answer. It was possible he was overreacting, and Naruto was just busy whenever he called. He sighed. "No, nothing is wrong. Thank you for checking."

"Let me know if you need anything else."

"Thank you."

. . .

Neji leaned back, looking at his computer screen thoughtfully. Sasuke was stubborn. Obviously something was wrong. If Sasuke had been able to contact Naruto, he wouldn't need to have Neji check on the plane flight. The only question was how to go about getting the answer Sasuke actually wanted without causing anyone to feel uncomfortable.

He was tempted to roll his eyes, but didn't. Instead, he simply sat forward in his chair and typed out a short email to Sakura, letting her know how much they had enjoyed their visit to Japan and how they hoped that the trip home had been completed safely. He read over the letter carefully, then pressed send and turned toward the next order of business. For a genius, Sasuke was surprisingly dense sometimes.

. . .

Itachi leaned back in his chair, skimming over the details of the transactions that had taken place while he was away. He wasn't concerned at all, but it never hurt to be thorough. Most of his employees worked to their fullest capacity whether he was there to keep an eye on them or not – but they were only human.

It was a small thing that caught his eye. So small that anyone without the business instincts of an Uchiha probably wouldn't've noticed it. Nothing overt, in and of itself. Something told him to dig deeper, though, if only to satisfy his concerns.

He found what he was looking for buried in the wording of a report. It was, on the surface, innocuous. Without Itachi's knowledge of the surrounding market and most recent legal issues, it probably would have meant nothing. In reality, it wasn't a huge problem; only a few million yen. Still, Sasuke should have caught it.

He checked the date of the email. It would have been on Sasuke's desk on Friday. Itachi frowned. Perhaps Sasuke had let the blond distract him from work – that wasn't like him at all, though. It did not need to become a habit.

For a moment, Itachi wondered if the plans he'd made with Sakura were really such a good idea. He knew Deidara would have his hide if he suggested putting the business before Sasuke's mental well being – but really, that wasn't it. Sasuke was an adult with responsibilities and many people counting on him. He needed to be able to keep his work and personal life separate. Itachi was willing to overlook the unorthodox way the two had met up, but he wouldn't be able to just idly stand by if Sasuke's performance was affected by their relationship.

He sighed, turning to the emails from Sasuke's work for the past week and going back over them with a fine toothed comb. He didn't find any other issues with his younger brother's performance, but the doubt still lingered in the back of his mind.

. . .

Naruto shifted in his sleep, eyes shut. "Sasuke, please," he moaned, rolling over.

The door bell rang.

"Please, Sasuke, I need it, I have to have it."

The doorbell rang again.

'Please Sasuke, it's ramen, I can't live without my ramen!"

A door slammed open down the hall, and Naruto's bedroom door was wrenched open. "For fuck's sake, Naruto, can't you answer your own doorbell?" Kiba asked. He sighed down at the blond, rubbing his web hair with a towel and then throwing it at Naruto's face.

"Hey! What the!"

"Get up and go answer the door before they break the doorbell or something. I need to get dressed."

The blond growled, rolling out of bed and scratching his ass. "You're so not a morning person!" he yelled after the retreating brunet. Then he glanced at his clock, wondering who in the world would ring his doorbell at seven in the morning. He looked around for a clean shirt and spied the white one he'd unpacked the night before, slipping it on before going to find out the solution to the question of his visitor.

The answer was not what he had expected.

"Kagero Moving Company. We're here to pack up your belongings."

"You're what?" Naruto said, mouth gaping as he looked at the man in front of him. The man looked bored, grey hair covered with a light green baseball cap. He was wearing faded denim overalls. Behind him, several similarly dressed men stood leaning up against a van with a large green logo for KMC.

"We have orders signed by a Mr. um, Goketsu?" the man said, checking his clipboard.

"What? When?" Naruto said, trying to see the clipboard.

The other man frowned, and then handed it over. "See, right there, signed and authorized. We even have a key, but since someone was home, we didn't want to just barge in like we owned the place."

"There must be some mistake," Naruto mused. He glanced back up at the man. "The orders are to pack up just a couple rooms, or the whole house?"

"We were told to pack up the whole house, using the utmost care, and then that the items would be placed in a secure storage facility awaiting transport."

"So you don't know the intended final destination," Naruto mused.

"You don't know where you're moving?"

Naruto glared at him. "As far as I know, we aren't moving." Yet. But that was a possibility he hadn't even discussed with Sakura.

"Well, we have our orders. Can we get started, sir?"

"No, you may not."

"We have the deposit already."

The blond stared at the man. He did not seem to want to get the picture. Naruto was tempted to blow up in his face, but he had other things to take care of today. "Can your services be rescheduled?"

The other man nodded. "Yes, but there is a rescheduling fee since we already arrived."

"Fine, whatever. Just – go, take care of someone else. We'll call you when we need you."

"No problem. Ah, here," the man said, digging around in a pair of dirty overalls. "Here's my card, just call the number on the bottom and they'll work with you to reschedule. Sorry it's a little bent up."

"It's fine," Naruto said, thinking about the last few times he'd exchanged business cards.

"Have a great day!"

"You too," Naruto replied, watching as the men piled into the van and drove away. He wondered idly where they were planning on putting all the things once they were packed. Maybe they had another truck come along separately.

The blond turned and went back into the house, following the sounds of someone thoroughly enjoying breakfast.

"Who the hell was that?" Kiba asked.

"Moving company, of all things."

"What?" The brunet turned and looked at Naruto.

"Yeah, with orders signed by the great Jiraiya Goketsu last Thursday afternoon."

"What is he thinking?"

"I have no clue. Are you about ready?"

"Not going to eat breakfast?"

"Maybe later. I want to head over to the company first and see if Sakura knows anything about the old coot."

"Sure, no problem," Kiba said, taking his bowl and rinsing it in the water of the sink. "Don't worry, we'll sniff him out."

"Man, I hope so," Naruto asked, checking his messages one more time to see if anyone new had tried to get ahold of him. No such luck.

"Want to just take my car?" Kiba asked.

Normally, Naruto would try to stay as far away as possible from the thing that Kiba called a car. After all, it was held together more by luck than anything else; he'd even heard rumors that the car's frame had been weilded together by some mechanic down in Mexico. Today,though, he didn't care.

After all, it was handy to have a bug to dart through the traffic. They were very maneuverable. Even if the thought of what might happen if someone happened to run into them happened to cross Naruto's mind. Even if, because of those thoughts, he was clutching onto the corners of the seat and keeping his eyes closed. If it would help him find his grandfather, he'd take the risks.

. . .

Naruto walked into Sakura's office followed by Kiba.

"Morning, sunshine," she said, a very satisfied look on her face. "How's Jiji?"

"He's not home. We don't know where he is."

"What?" Sakura said.

"He's not home. He hasn't been there since I got home. I haven't been able to reach him for the past few days, either."

"Oh no," Sakura said, going pale.

Naruto frowned at her, trying to figure out if she was reacting to the news of the old coot's dissapearance or something else. "Hey, I saw several calls from you on the phone, do you know anything about what's going on?"

"Um," the pinkette said, looking down at her desk. "Maybe?"

The blond was getting frustrated. "Look, Sakura, if you know anything, let me know! This is my grandfather we're talking about here. What is going on?"

At that moment, the strains of an old pop song filled the air. Kiba cursed, pulling out his phone and mumbling something about Sai. Naruto had never understood what the girl wanted people to hit, personally.

"Hello?" Kiba said, frowning slightly. His concern depeend the longer the person on the other end talked. He waved at Naruto, trying to get his attention, then looked shocked at whatever the person on the other end was telling him.

"He what?"

**... . . . ... . . . ... . . . ...**

**Afria - yeeep. And messages... if you log into the author panel, theres a place for messages? you should have some from me o.O if not, are you on Y!g? Might be easier there.**

**Kuro Neko - *blush* aww, ty :) I'm so glad you like them :)**

**xBitterSweetInsanity - thanks! You'll find out :)**

**akiraoniichan - lol I've had those moments too. I have those moments when I worry I'll post up a chapter with really really weird crazy things in it... that I didn't mean to put there... simply because I'm so tired I'm falling asleep at the keyboard. Which doesn't happen often. But sometimes, meh, yeah. There will be more Sai later... and does your wrath include bunnies? because the threat of Itachi ... well... hubba hubba? ^_^ (the face is soo kawaii!) heart heart :)**


	22. Chapter 22

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character.**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, moodyness**

**A/N: I get to eat lunch with someone from Japan today ^_^ yay!**

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^**

**...**

Naruto just barely registered that Kiba's last exclamation had been made in Japanese. He frowned, watching while Kiba continued the conversation, curling into the phone and speaking more quietly. He glanced over at Sakura. She was looking down at her desk. He wanted to ask her what was going on, but not before Kiba was done with his phone call.

The brunet hung up the phone and looked at them. "Well, I know where Jiraiya is."

"What?" the other two said in concert.

"Evidently, he's in Tokyo. That was my publishing house – a guy from the main office, over there. Jiraiya showed up there this evening and told him he was moving to Japan."

"What?" Naruto yelled out, louder than before. Then it registered that Sakura hadn't yelled with him. "Sakura? Did you know about this? What's going on?"

"That's what I was trying to tell you," she said, looking down.

He was about ready to walk over to her desk and – crap. He took a deep breath, and glanced at his watch. "Whatever. Tell me later. I need to get back over there and find him, that's what's important right now."

The blond walked out of her office to their secretary and told her to order a plane flight for Tokyo. "We're about to head for the airport, so try and find one that arrives as soon as possible. I don't care about the cost."

"Make that two tickets," Kiba said from behind him.

"I'll cover them both," Sakura said, standing in the doorway to her office.

Naruto looked back and nodded.

"By the way, where's your phone?" the pinkette said. "I haven't been able to reach you."

"I don't know. I may have left it in Japan, I can't find it – gah, Sasuke."

"I'll try and get in touch with them. You guys go, I'll call Kiba's phone."

"Yeah, thanks," Naruto said.

She came up to him and grabbed his hand, squeezing it. "I'm sorry. It's all just a big – "

He looked at her, and sighed. "Tell me about it later. We have to go." He squeezed back briefly, then turned and walked out the door.

"Keys, Kiba," he said, holding out his hand to the brunet as they walked down the stairs to the lobby.

"What?" Kiba said.

"Keys. I'm going to drive. I need to do something, and half the things I want to do I can't do at the moment, so – give me your keys."

They walked out the door and started towards the parking lot.

"You think just because you're in some pissy assed mood I'm going to let you take it out on my baby?"

"Pissy assed mood – fuck you." Naruto said, catching the keys as they were thrown to him. He unlocked the door and slid inside the bug, reaching over to unlock the passenger side.

"No thanks," Kiba said, getting in and buckling up. "You're not my type."

"Yeah, thank whatever powers that be for that."

Kiba waited until Naruto was safely out on the road, and then continued. "What, you wouldn't want to be lusted after by this fine piece of manflesh?"

"Manflesh? You're so corny. And no, I would not want to have to wake up next to your hairy ass in my bed."

"My ass is not hairy. Well, not that hairy," Kiba said, eyes widening at a parked car that passed by way too close. "Does Sasuke have a hairy ass?"

"Sasuke. Fuck. Oh man, you didn't get his number, did you?"

"Naruto! Watch out!"

"They moved. It's the freeway; they know to get out of the way."

"One would hope. I swear I can just cancel my trip to Vegas this year and take you out driving instead."

Naruto chuckled, switching lanes again. "Man, I love the carpool lane."

"Yeah," Kiba said, glancing at the speedometer with a bit of worry. "And no, we didn't exchange numbers."

"Damn. Maybe Sakura has it, I didn't think about that."

"Yeah, probably. It's like one or two in the morning over there now though."

"Why'd they call you so late?"

"Evidently Jiji convinced them to go out drinking."

"I bet that was tough. Man, what is he thinking?"

"I don't know. Sec, phone," the brunet said, opening it up and listening for a second.

Naruto watched as Kiba opened the glove compartment and shuffled around, looking for something to write on. He pulled out a pad of paper and pen and shifted the phone to his other ear, scribbling something down. "Thanks," he finally said, hanging up.

"Flights?"

"Yeah, she booked us on the 11:40 Korean Air flight, we should get in around three their time."

"Good." He patted his pockets, ignoring when Kiba made some noise of concern about how it might affect his driving. "Just checking to make sure I grabbed my passport. I did. You have yours?"

"Um."

"Kiba?"

The brunet leaned forward, rifling around in his glove compartment.

"You keep your passport in your glove compartment?" Naruto exclaimed.

"Hopefully – yep!" the brunet said, waving the document in the air.

"You're insane."

"Hey, I was tired the other day and didn't know where to put it."

Naruto just shook his head, watching the signs for the exit to the 105 that would take them to the airport.

"By the way, what's up with your new ringtone? I thought you hated that song."

Kiba grimaced. "I do. Stupid Sai. Don't ever let him get ahold of your phone. By that, I mean don't ever try to drink him under the table, and leave yourself open once it doesn't work."

Naruto chuckled, weaving through traffic toward the proper exit.

. . .

Sakura sat down at her desk and leaned back in the chair, trying to calm down. Her secretary popped her head in the door and told her the details about the flight, confirming that she'd let Kiba and Naruto know. Sakura thanked her.

"Is everything alright, ma'am?"

The pinkette looked at her a minute, and then said, "Yes. Just Jiraiya being Jiraiya. Could you get me a cup of tea, please?"

"Certainly, ma'am."

She turned to her computer and checked her emails, thinking about the best way to go about contacting Uchiha corp. She glanced at the clock, calculating the time difference in her head. A phone call wouldn't do. So perhaps an email.

The thought of emailing Sasuke directly was a bit intimidating, especially considering everything else that was going on. Even just imagining his face when he heard what all had happened was a very scary image. She'd probably have to face it at some point, but probably better to do it after everything was solved. Naruto would be over there soon anyhow.

She was still trying to figure out what to do when she saw the email from Neji. Reading between the lines, she could see that Sasuke was obviously worried about Naruto. She wrote Neji back, assuring him that everyone was fine, and letting him know that Naruto would be coming over to take care of some family matters. She also mentioned the fact that Naruto's cell phone was currently not operational, and gave him Kiba's number as an alternate. That should take care of most of the problems.

Then, she emailed Deidara with a more detailed explanation of what was going on, confessing her plans and how things had spiraled outside of those plans. The blond didn't check his email all that often, and she knew he was a late riser, but it was better than nothing.

Sighing, she sat back. This wasn't how things were supposed to go at all. Seriously, a girl should be able to surprise her number one surprising best friend without having to worry about all of this. Thinking about the other players in the equation, however – including the most surprising best friend – she had to admit, she probably shouldn't be shocked. Crossing her fingers that everything would turn out alright, she sent a text to Kiba asking him to call her once they were through security and waiting on their plane.

. . .

Kiba followed Naruto through the terminal, dreading the thought of another ten hour plane flight. He'd called Ino while they were in the baggage line earlier to make sure she would be willing to dogsit again. He'd started thinking in the car about the implications of Naruto and Jiraiya possibly moving to Japan. He knew Jiraiya was crazy, but he wasn't that crazy – not yet. At least he'd have something to worry about on the flight. He gave a little internal shrug and plopped down beside his best friend.

Naruto sat back in the airport chair. "I am so sick of this place," he said.

"You're telling me. At least we get to try out a new airline."

"True." Naruto watched the people through slitted eyes, sighing. "I can't believe you still had your luggage in the car."

"You can't believe I'm that lazy?"

"Eh," the blond said, "you have a point."

"Any idea what you're going to do for clothes when you get over there?"

Naruto shot him a dirty look. "Are you saying I stink?"

"Well, I have to admit, that shirt isn't too fresh."

"Heh. I'll make do with something. I know they sell clothes over there."

"True."

"And I bet I can get another one of these shirts if I want it," the blond continued, a slight smirk on his face. Then he frowned. "I hope Sasuke's not upset about my phone being missing."

"Is he the type to freak out?"

"Maybe."

"Just make it up to him when you get there. And don't feel the need to tell me the details."

Naruto chuckled. "I'd call you a prude if I hadn't had to help you juggle your relationship issues in college."

"Heh." The brunet supposed he really couldn't be considered a prude, but – Naruto was like a brother to him. He'd been scarred by being exposed to Hana and her escapades while still in junior high, he didn't need any more of that.

"You know what I should have done earlier?" Naruto said, interrupting his train of thought.

"What's that?"

"Had you let me talk to Jiji on the phone. Did they tell you why he said he was moving to Japan?"

"Well," Kiba replied, "they said he was under the impression that you were moving to Japan."

"Where in the world would he get that idea?" Naruto said, looking puzzled. Then he frowned. "Give me your phone."

"Sure, no problem."

Naruto flipped it open, frowning at the screen. "You have a text message from Sakura asking you to call her when we got through customs."

"Really? Oops."

Naruto chuckled. "If you're gonna put the damn thing on vibrate, at least put it in a spot where you can find it."

"Bite me."

"No thanks, don't want to get rabies. Hello, Sakura?" the blond said, turning away from the brunet after making a face at him."

Kiba just sat back, chuckling to himself and wondering why he had a sneaking suspicion his whole life was about to be turned upside down.

. . .

Naruto held the phone up to his ear, watching planes taxi outside the terminal.

"Naruto!" Sakura said. "I was afraid that Kiba didn't get my text. Have any problems getting in?"

"No, it's fine. So listen, Sakura –"

"Naruto I –"

"It's alright. You first."

"Ok. So um, where do I start. I think I know the reason Jiraiya might have run off like this – but wait, let me finish, please?"

"Alright."

"Well, I've been thinking – for a while now, actually – that the person to head the branch in Japan should be you."

Naruto sat back, a bit stunned. "Really?" he asked.

"Yes. You deserve it; just being my assistant isn't enough for your talents and we always meant to end up equals in this thing anyhow. Besides, you love Japan, and know more about the business than anyone besides me, so it just seemed perfect. I was planning on talking to you about it this week after we got back – and after you met Sasuke, it seemed even more perfect."

"Wow," Naruto said, speechless for a minute. "Thank you. I can't believe you didn't mention any of it to me, though – you're horrible when it comes to secrets."

Sakura gave a short, self-deprecating little laugh. "Well, I wanted it to be a surprise. Surprise!"

"It is that," the blond said, letting the possibilities play in his mind.

"But I also knew you wouldn't ever be willing to move over there without Jiji, so I called him up last week to feel him out about if he'd be able or willing to move – "

"Oh?"

"Yeah, and then we got cut off in the middle of the conversation," she continued.

Naruto rubbed his forehead. "Let me guess. You tried to call back and he didn't answer."

"Yeah, and we both know how he hates to carry a cell phone."

"And of course, you didn't decide to tell me anything about it."

"Well! I just thought I could never catch him, I didn't think –"

"You didn't?"

"Well, maybe a little bit," the pinkette admitted. "But I didn't really think."

Naruto pinched the bridge of his nose and counted to ten. He thought over the frustrations of the last few hours, and then about what Sakura had been trying to do. In the end, he just had to laugh.

"No big deal, Sakura-chan. He's safe, right?"

"Yeah."

"Thank you. Even if –"

He could imagine her smile. "You're welcome. I hope everything's ok."

"Well, I'm sure it will be. Especially now that I know that he actually had some reason for running off like that and wasn't just sinking into senility. Even if the reason was pretty flimsy, and he should have waited around, and left a note, and – well, you know."

"Yeah. I'm sorry, I should have thought."

"It'll be ok."

"I hope so."

"Ah, they're calling for our flight. I have to go."

"Ok! Oh! I sent an email over to Uchiha corporation, and one to Deidara, so –"

"Ah, hey, can you text Sasuke's number to Kiba's phone? So we can have it when we land?"

"Sure thing. Hope you don't get too bored on your flight!"

"I'll try not to."

"Just think about your raven!"

Naruto chuckled, following Kiba into the line. "I'll try not to; don't think Kiba would appreciate that."

"Not those type of thoughts! Anyhow, have a good flight, be safe."

"I will. Talk to you later Sakura. And, thanks again."

He grinned, hanging up the phone. His family wanted to make him tear his hair out some days – but their hearts were in the right place. He smiled to himself, a bounce in his step as his mind thought about what could happen if he did move to Japan. Suddenly, he couldn't wait to see Sasuke. Their plane couldn't land soon enough.

. . .

Sasuke frowned when he walked in the door of his office. Neji wasn't at his desk. That was unusual. The raven checked his calendar, and saw that Neji had a doctor's appointment and would be out part of the morning. He checked his email. Nothing. He checked his voice messages. Nothing. This was starting off as a very bad day.

He hadn't been able to sleep well at all the night before. His thoughts were too full of worry about Naruto, about what was going on. He'd stayed up until late, thinking that maybe Naruto would answer in the morning, but there was no answer. He tried it again. He was starting to feel like a stalker, with all of these missed calls. He thought about emailing Sakura, but shied away from that idea. It felt like he really would be a stalker, then.

"Why aren't you answering?" Sasuke mused, hand lingering on his phone. The days before were starting to almost feel like a dream. He was starting to doubt – what if he was the only one who felt like this? What if Naruto had just been having fun, or had second thoughts when he got back home? He tried to distract himself from his thoughts with work, but he couldn't focus on anything. He checked his calendar. At least he didn't have any important meetings scheduled for the day. He'd hate to think what he would be like meeting clients in this state.

The last thing he needed was for his older brother to open the door, come in, and sit down across from his desk without even saying hello. The two looked at each other for a moment, Sasuke trying to keep his agitation well under wraps. Finally, Itachi leaned forward.

"Sasuke, I want to talk to you about something."

The younger raven raised an eyebrow in response.

"I was going over the projects from last week, and noticed something." The older raven showed him one of the projects he'd been working on last week, and Sasuke frowned as he noticed his mistake. "I know last week was rather unusual, but I don't expect to see these types of lapses in attention where you're concerned, Sasuke."

Sasuke's gaze snapped up to meet his brothers. He didn't say anything.

"If you're going to be involved in a relationship, you need to make sure to keep work separate from your personal life."

"Is this your way of criticizing me for getting involved with Naruto even though he is a client?"

The older raven frowned. "Take it however you would like. Just remember things aren't only about you and him – we have employees counting on us to make sure that we take care of them, and if you make a habit out of these types of mistakes they're the ones who will be hurt."

"I don't make a habit out of these types of mistakes, aniki."

"I realize that, little brother. I am telling you I don't want to see you start."

They both stared at each other for a moment, anger sparking between them.

Itachi frowned and said, "Naruto seems like a very nice man. But whatever is going on between the two of you, you're letting it affect work, and you should expect that I will speak to you about it if I see it. You're too good at your job to let it slide."

"Like you weren't emotional when it came to Deidara."

"Naruto isn't Deidara."

"No. He's not. He's not yours."

"You're acting like a child."

"You –" Sasuke said, stopping and looking away.

Itachi leaned back, trying to catch his breath. "How is Naruto, anyhow?"

"I don't know."

"What?"

"I don't know! He hasn't answered his phone since he's been back."

Itachi frowned. "Have you tried emailing him?"

"No," Sasuke said, kicking himself now that Itachi suggested it.

"Have you tried emailing Sakura?"

"No."

"Have you tried any of their other numbers?"

"No, ok? I've just been calling his cell phone, but all it does is go voice mail!"

They glared at each other, both ready to break.

Itachi narrowed his eyes. "Maybe he just doesn't want to talk to you."

The room went cold. Sasuke stared at him, incredulous, as his older brother's words echoed the worst corners of his heart. He stood from the desk. "Just go fuck yourself, Itachi."

He stormed out of the office, running into a surprised looking Neji and Deidara exiting the elevator. "I'm taking the day off, Neji. I'm sure you can handle things."

He didn't even look at his older brother as he pressed the button for the garage, resting his head against the cool wall of the elevator as the doors slid shut.

**... . . . ... . . . ... . . . ... . . . ...**

**ColoredOnyx14 - awww, thank you! I'm very glad you like it :)**

**Afria - ^_^ ^_^ ^_^ one could hope... though what is Sasuke going to do?**

**Darkloverkitsune - awwwwww ... and sorry to dissapoint you again, but yeah, it is. I'm very very glad you are enjoying it! I suppose I'll have to make it up to you somehow, sometime... maybe next chappie? maybe... :P**

**Juura99 - awww, i'm glad it's coming together the way I planned. So glad you're liking it!**


	23. Chapter 23

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character.**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, moodyness**

**A/N: A bit shorter than normal, but... yeah. **

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^**

**...**

Even as the words left his mouth, Itachi was wishing he could take them back. He didn't understand how even the most straightforward conversation with Sasuke could sometimes turn and burn out of control. No one else could make him lose control like that – not even Deidara.

When Sasuke turned and walked out of the office, Itachi followed. Deidara caught his eye with a look of question, but the raven shook his head briefly and turned to Neji.

"Hyuuga-san, could you please email Sakura and try to find out if there is anything wrong with Naruto?" he asked.

Neji slipped behind his desk and started powering up his computer. "Already done," he said. "I'll let you know the reply when I get it."

He nodded, and turned down the hall towards his office, trailing a certain blond.

Itachi opened the door and went in, trying to take a moment to gather his thoughts before turning around. It was like watching a train wreck coming towards you, and not being able to move out of the way. On top of that, he was genuinely worried about Sasuke – it'd been several years since he'd been mad enough to tell him to fuck off. Trusting that Sasuke's good sense would overcome any momentary impulsiveness, Itachi schooled his features and turned around.

Unfortunately, it seemed that Deidara could see right through him. As always.

The blond closed the door behind himself, and then cocked his head to the side, glancing at the raven with a calm look on his face. "Care to explain what just happened there?"

. . .

Sasuke calmed down a bit on the ride home. There were times when he was convinced he absolutely hated his brother. Despised, abhorred, detested the older raven and his condescending ways. It annoyed the hell out of him that Itachi knew exactly what to say to get under his skin and stick the knife in deep without even trying. The fact that he was equally able to do the same was not a comfort at this time.

The larger part of himself knew that he didn't really hate him – and, after a few minutes, a corner of his mind was even starting to try and get the rest to acknowledge that Itachi hadn't really been trying to piss him off, even though that was exactly what had happened. Part of him even tried to act like it could see where his brother was coming from, but he slammed the door on that as soon as it started speaking up. Screw that. Intentions or not, Itachi could be a royal fucking asshole.

He startled the cleaning lady when he walked in the apartment, taking off his shoes and managing to greet her politely. He had almost forgotten she was coming. He forced himself to calm down, knowing that he couldn't ask her to leave without her taking it as an insult and thus would be unable to do most of the activities he was currently tempted to accomplish – most of which were loud or otherwise socially unacceptable.

Instead, he turned down the hall towards his bedroom and then opened the door at the end of the hall, entering the one room in the house he used the least. It was a small study, decorated in traditional style with tatami mats. Bookshelves lined the walls. They were all older books, many of them inherited from his grandfather. A low table sat to one side covered with all the equipment used in creating calligraphy. He shut the door gently, and sat down on a cushion in front of the table, closing his eyes for a moment to try and center himself.

For a few minutes, he tried to empty his mind of everything. Then he opened his mind and looked down at the table, uncapping a bottle of water and pouring a bit into the suzuri. The inkstone was one of the things he'd inherited from his grandfather, the man who had taught him calligraphy. He knew he must always treat it with respect. That helped him focus as he picked up the sumi and started to carefully rub it against the inkstone, watching as the black charcoal began to mix with the water. He made sure not to press too hard. There was an art to the preparation that was as important as any other element involved with the actual production.

As he finished mixing the ink, he laid out a sheet of paper centered on the mat, setting the long thin paperweights on top and bottom sides of the sheet. It was just a practice sheet of hanshi, since he did not intend to necessarily keep it. This was for practice, and meditation, not creation.

He picked up a hosofude and dipped the tip in the ink, holding it above the paper before he began to draw. He focused on the movement of the brush and the creation of beauty, trying to push all emotions to the back of his mind so he could actually think.

Itachi was right that he shouldn't be letting his issues with Naruto affect work. He acknowledged that. He thought about what would have happened if he'd been this upset during an archery tournament, whether he would have let the emotions get the best of him and destroy his chances of making the perfect shot. It wasn't too hard to imagine – he'd been there. Whatever else was going on, he still had his pride. He hadn't let the emotions get the best of him back then; he was definitely not going to let them do so now.

Still, the worry was there. Now that he had taken a step back, he could see that Itachi's remark did not have merit. From everything he knew about Naruto – and Sakura Corporation – there was no way the blond would have intentionally just cut all ties without a word of explanation. And he had landed successfully. Perhaps there was a different explanation.

He had to acknowledge, though, that there was a fear within him that he was in this far deeper than the blond. He felt this desire to have him, even for a moment. A certain melancholy rose up within him at the thought that maybe, now that the blond was back in his normal life, he'd draw even farther away. Sasuke felt like it was a weakness to be attached so quickly, but the feelings did not abate. He decided to give them voice.

_My lips long to taste_

_Water droplets flowing from_

_Blushing pink petals_

_But my mouth will remain parched_

_For the flower has fallen_

He looked the poem over for a moment, and then heard his phone vibrate in his pocket. Setting down the brush and pulling it out, he frowned. He was still angry at Itachi. He noticed that there were a couple of calls from him, and one from Neji's number. He didn't want to speak to either of them. They could wait.

He turned back to the paper, contemplating it for a moment. Something in him rebelled against the last line – not to mention, describing the dobe as a flower was grossly inaccurate. He chuckled. He was tempted to save it just to through in Naruto's face at some point – then scrunched up his nose when he thought of the comebacks the blond would have to it. No, best to let it go entirely.

He picked up the paper and folded it a couple of times before setting it in a low shallow ceramic bowl to the side. Lighting a match, he touched the flame to the edge of the paper, watching it burn. The ritual was cleansing.

Sighing, he turned and picked up another piece of paper, settling it on the shitajiki and placing the weights. Then he picked up the brush again, making sure the ink was not yet dry.

. . .

Deidara rarely fought with Itachi. He acknowledged that the other man was not necessarily perfect. He also acknowledge that his lover sometimes had a slightly skewed sense of how to handle things, especially when it came to his little brother. As he listened to the raven's explanation, he walked over and sat down in a chair across from him.

"He shouldn't be so impatient," Itachi concluded.

"Yeah," Deidara muttered, looking to the side and thinking. He had to admit there was a part of him that took some sadistic glee in Sasuke's issues. It was almost like a bit of belated payback. Unfortunately, he cared enough about Naruto to not want the blondie to suffer, and he probably would when he found out how upset Sasuke had been at his absence. Though Deidara supposed that it was nice to know you were so missed.

"I was patient," the raven continued.

Deidara raised an eyebrow. "That's one word for it. You were also pretty damn cocky you'd get me in the end, yeah."

Itachi smirked. "I was right."

The blond just rolled his eyes – Itachi knew he hadn't meant it that way. But, he was right. Deidara shook his head ruefully, then went said, "True, but we resolved most everything years ago. Sasuke's been single – well, off and on, but really – for how long? I think this is the most serious I've seen him be about anyone."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Hn." It was the raven's turn to look away, frowning.

"Also, you were both wrong."

Itachi looked at him and raised an eyebrow.

"Naruto isn't trying to ignore Sasuke. When he got home, his grandfather was missing, and he's spent the last day or so trying to find him. He also lost his cell phone. His grandfather is evidently over here in Japan, and Naruto is flying over to come and get him."

"Hn." Itachi said, frowning. "He lost his cell phone?"

Deidara nodded.

"And his grandfather?"

"Yes."

"Are you really sure this is the type of person –"

"Yes."

Itachi still looked skeptical, so Deidara grinned. "Just think how many ways Sasuke will get to learn about patience."

The raven smirked at that, and the blond was pleased to know that he'd most likely headed off the potential protective big brother reaction. Then Deidara leaned forward, a calculated glint in his eye. He had been listening to the entire story, after all. And he'd heard some things that Itachi probably hadn't meant to let slip.

"Now," he said sweetly, "Let's talk about you."

The look in Itachi's eyes was something he was only very very rarely able to produce.

. . .

Kiba nudged Naruto awake as they landed at the airport. The blond looked around groggily, trying to remember where he was.

"Wake up, dorkface. I swear you're like sleeping beauty or something, only without the beauty."

"Shuaup."

"What was that?"

"I said Shut up, dogface. I'm awake, I'm awake." The blond stuck his tongue out at his friend before sitting up and watching the people start to exit.

"So what's the plan here? We both going to go get Jiraiya, or what?"

Naruto looked over at him, thinking. "Give me your phone."

"So demanding." Kiba said, handing it over before he got up to grab his backpack from the overhead compartment.

"Shut up, you like it. I've heard the stories, remember?" Naruto said, opening it up and flipping down to the right number.

Kiba shuddered. "I so do not want to think about you like that. Don't even go there."

Naruto grinned cheekily, then pressed send, and listened to the phone ring as they made their way down the aisle and into the terminal. "Yeah, yeah. Fuck, he isn't answering. Maybe because he doesn't know the number."

"Sasuke?"

"Yeah," Naruto said, pondering for a moment. Then he made up his mind.

"I'll tell you what. You go pick up Jiji from the publishers and talk to him."

"What do you want me to say – are you moving to Japan?"

Naruto blinked. "Um. Fuck," he said, frowning, then broke out into a brilliant smile. "Hell yeah," he whispered. "Yeah, I guess we are. Wow." His grin grew brilliant.

"Well, alright then." Kiba said. "Just up and leave all of us."

Naruto chuckled. "You could always come too – Jiji is your biggest author, after all," he said jokingly.

"You think?" Kiba said.

Naruto studied his face for a moment, and then grinned again. "Hell yeah! That would be so amazingly kick ass! We could hang out and explore the city together, and I could have fun with you if Sasuke starts being a bastard. You totally should ask them about it, I bet they'd go for it."

Kiba grinned back. "Maybe I will. What are you going to be doing in the meantime?"

"Hmm," Naruto said, "Trying to find Sasuke. I bet he's at work."

"Probably."

"That will work then. Oh, um, let me write down your cell phone number, just in case."

"Cool. Let me know how it turns out."

"No problem," Naruto said, grinning to himself. Excitement raced through him as he left Kiba near baggage claim, going to the curb and hailing a taxi. He hoped the raven was happy to see him.

. . .

Sasuke closed his phone, frowning at the unknown number. There was a discrete knock on the study door. He went and opened it.

The cleaning lady bowed politely, and then said, "Uchiha-sama, I am done for the day. Sorry to have disturbed you."

Sasuke nodded.

"I found some items in the bedroom that I wasn't sure what to do with," she continued.

The raven blinked a moment. He'd put the box of toys away in the closet the night before, but wasn't sure if he'd missed anything. That would be embarrassing.

"I left them on the bed. I hope that is alright?"

"Thank you, yes."

"Have a good day," she said, turning and going down the hall to the door.

"You as well."

As soon as she was out of sight, he rushed into the bedroom and took a look at the items in question. He cursed under his breath, reaching out and picking up one of the items, opening it up and pushing a couple of buttons. Internally, he groaned. He should have known.

"Dobe," he muttered, thinking a moment before turning to go and grab his keys.

. . .

All things considered, Neji was having a rather good day. The doctor's appointment had gone well. Both Uchihas were otherwise occupied. He was able to spend some time indulging himself with his favorite pastime, and he was also thinking up creative ways to rearrange the schedule of the raven who had so impolitely walked out on him earlier that morning.

He didn't expect to be disturbed for quite some time, the way things were going, which was why he was being self-indulgent. The ding of the elevator door came at the most inopportune time. He cursed under his breath.

Thus, he was not in a very forgiving mood when a certain blond walked out of the elevator and came to stand in front of his desk, looking rather sheepish. For politeness's sake, he probably should have stood up at that moment, but that would have been rather ill advised.

"Uzumaki-san. What a surprise. How may I help you?"

"Um, is Sasuke in?" the blond asked, scratching the back of his neck.

"He's out at the moment," Neji said. "He hasn't been able to contact you." Neji knew good and well why Sasuke hadn't been able to reach the blond, but he was feeling just a bit peeved at the moment and wanted to make him sweat.

"Oh. Oh, really? Um, I know. See, I lost my cell phone, and my grandfather, and –" the blond stopped, looking like he knew how much of an idiot he sounded like. Finally, he continued. "Hmm. Do you have any idea where he might be? I need to talk to him."

Neji narrowed his eyes, debating between drawing this out sooner and getting the blond out of here as quickly as possible so that he could continue his previous activities.

The decision was taken out of his hands, however, when the elevator dinged again and the doors slid open.

**... . . . ... . . . ... . . . ...**

**Juura99 - *snort* niiiice one :) Glad you like it... and yes, yes, I'm thinking he will... perviness of all kinds accepted here!**

**hollowsmile - hehe... well, we shall have to see!**

**dashllee - yeeep, not nice of 'tachi at *all*! *pout* but... i'm sure he's kickin himself for it right about now. and mebe being kicked...mwuhaha**


	24. Chapter 24

**Summary: Sometimes it's not a lack of understanding that's the problem - it's when the other person understands far too much.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto character.**

**Warnings: YAOI, boyxboy, light bondage**

**A/N: *giggles***

**Oh yeah, and reviews make mouths happy ^_^**

**...**

"Forget something, dobe?"

The words hung in the air. Sasuke watched as Naruto turned around and looked at him. The last thing he'd expected to see when the elevator doors opened was his blond, live and in person. He was still in a mild state of shock at the vision before him.

The blond gazed at him, slightly breathless and with wide eyes. He'd almost forgotten that perfect shade of blue. Sasuke held up the phone in his hand, and watched as Naruto looked down at it momentarily.

"Yeah," the blond said, stepping towards Sasuke and looking up with a purposeful look on his face. "You."

Suddenly, Sasuke found himself embraced by a very hot, hungry blond. The phone fell to the floor, unimportant. The raven wrapped his arms around his lover, kissing him fiercely and letting a hand run through soft blond locks. His other hand traveled further south and became firmly attached to the blond's ass. For a moment, there was nothing else in the world but this amazing person, here in his arms. He felt Naruto press himself closer, leaning against him like his legs were giving out. He made a small noise of satisfaction in the back of his throat, intensifying the kiss and grinding their hips together.

After a minute, they broke the kiss, Naruto gasping for breath and nuzzling in the crook of the raven's neck. Sasuke leaned his head against the blond, drinking in his scent. He glared at Neji, noticing that the brunet seemed busy with something in his lap. The other man looked up and smirked. Sasuke flipped him off, turning the blond in his arms so that he was out of line of sight of the brunet.

He pulled Naruto up for another kiss, savoring the taste and how responsively the blond was acting. The raven wanted to continue what they were doing right then and there, regardless of the audience, and damn the consequences. Unfortunately, it was not to be. His better sense kicked in, at least a bit. The two men pulled back and looked at each other, the blond smiling with a slightly dazed look in his eyes.

Sasuke smirked. "Nice shirt," he said.

Naruto opened his eyes wide, and then grinned. "Yeah, well, you look like hell, bastard."

Sasuke crinkled up his nose. "And you stink."

The blond looked shocked for a moment, like he was going to protest. Then he arched an eyebrow and said, "So why don't we do something about it?"

Sasuke smirked and pushed the elevator button, taking the time to put that smart mouth to better use while they waited. When the doors opened he pulled the blond inside and continued to molest him without even checking to see if there were any other passengers.

. . .

Shikamaru waited a moment, and then shook his head. "I'm never letting you talk me into this again."

Neji smirked, rolling back from the desk and zipping up his pants. "Are you sure?"

Shikamaru crawled out from under the desk, glaring up at his lover. "So troublesome," he said, standing up and arching his back. Then he turned back to the other man. "'He hasn't been able to contact you?' Wasn't that a bit harsh?"

Neji shrugged. "Not at all. His timing was terrible."

Shikamaru chuckled, leaning against the desk as Neji sat back down.

"I have another call to make," Neji said. He picked up the phone, letting his other hand brush against Shikamaru's thigh. "Inuzuka-san?" he said into the receiver.

He paused a moment, then said, "Yes, this is Hyuuga-san from the Uchiha corporation. We just wanted to check and make sure everything was fine with Goketsu-sensei."

Shikamaru leaned closer to him, letting his legs brush the other's thighs. Neji let his fingers trace over the other man's thigh before saying, "I'm glad. Are you sure you don't need any assistance?"

Neji tugged at Shikamaru's pants, urging him towards his lap, and then said, "Let me give you a number in case you need anything. Don't hesitate to call." He gave the man on the other end of the phone his number, then hung up and pulled a reluctant Shikamaru into his lap. "Sorry," Neji murmured, kissing the other man gently and playing with his hair with slightly calloused fingertips.

"No problem," Shikamaru said, letting his fingers run through the other man's long hair. "Done with everything yet? For some reason, I think your boss wouldn't mind you taking off early."

Neji chuckled. "Lazy."

"You love me when I'm lazy, though."

"Maybe," Neji said, tasting the other again before saying, "And as for work, not quite yet. Want to help me rearrange Sasuke's calendar for the next, oh, three months?"

Shikamaru coughed, standing up to let his lover have better access to the computer. "You're one evil person," he said.

"You love me when I'm evil, though."

"True," Shikamaru said, getting out a cigarette. "I'm going to go grab a smoke and make sure Itachi knows what's going on," he said, sighing. "This will probably make things more complicated, won't it?"

"Nothing you can't handle."

Shikamaru glared at the other brunet. Neji ignored him, focusing on the computer screen in front of him. "I suppose," Shikamaru said finally. "See you at home soon?"

"Soon," Neji said, pulling him down for a kiss before waving goodbye as Shikamaru walked down the hall towards Itachi's office.

. . .

Sasuke pressed Naruto back against the hood of his car, letting a hand slip into the back of the blond's pants as he devoured his mouth. They'd barely made it through the car ride back to the raven's apartment building. The only reason they'd made it outside the car was because the center console did not lend itself to heavy petting.

Naruto moaned as Sasuke trailed kisses down to his neck, encouraged by the hand on his ass to press his body up against the raven's. Sasuke pushed back, trapping Naruto between him and the metal of the car. The blond felt himself going weak, mewling a bit as the hand dipped deeper into his pants, fingertips teasing his crack with a rhythm that was soon picked up by the raven's body, making the blond cling tightly to the other man.

"Fuck, Sasuke," Naruto said, whispering into the other man's ear.

The raven chuckled. "Right here right now?"

"Fuck – maybe," the blond said, groaning as Sasuke pushed hard against him. He chuckled. "Damn, I can't believe it's only been a couple days."

Sasuke pinched his ass in a very sensitive spot, making the blond yelp. "I can't believe you didn't call me, idiot," he said. Naruto could sense just the slightest bit of accusation in the raven's teasing tone, and instantly felt guilty.

"I'm sorry," Naruto said, nuzzling his neck. "My grandfather – it's a long story. Good news, though."

"Hn." The raven hugged him tighter, and then said, "You can tell me all about it later."

"Of course," the blond said, smiling into Sasuke's neck. It was good news, and judging by the raven's current actions, he would agree with that assessment when he found out.

Sasuke leaned back, looking deep into the blond's eyes. "Much as I would like to continue," he said, "it might be wiser to move this upstairs."

Naruto smirked, licking his lips and pushing forward just enough to cause a reaction in the raven's dark grey eyes. "I suppose you're right, teme," he said, pushing against the raven's chest. Sasuke stepped back, watching him hungrily as he turned to orient himself toward the exits. The raven placed a hand in the small of his back to guide him to the elevator. As they stood waiting for it to arrive, he let his hands slide around the blond's body, leaning his head forward to bite the Naruto's neck.

"Hey!"

"Hn?"

"Oh." The raven knew just exactly how to take advantage of the perfect spot to bite. Naruto leaned back, closing his eyes. When the doors opened, Sasuke had to push him forward to break him out of his daze.

"You do realize," Sasuke said, pushing the blond's ass up against the wall of the elevator, "that I have you exactly where I want you right now."

Naruto gasped as the raven's fingers squeezed him through the fabric of his jeans. "Yes," he said, ignoring the breathless sound of his cry.

"And that," Sasuke said, kissing the blond in a teasing fashion that had him gasping for the touch of those so soft lips, "now that you've come back to me, I'm not going to want to letting you go?"

Naruto grinned, feeling a bit goofy with all the happiness around him. "Yes."

"And that I always get what I want?" the raven said, pulling back and looking down on the flushed face of the blond.

A grin spread across Naruto's features, and he glanced at the raven seductively. "Want me."

His answer was in the glint of the raven's eyes and the feeling of two hands tightening around his body. "Oh, trust me, Naru-chan, I'm going to do more than want."

They both grinned at each other knowingly, and then Naruto opened his mouth and pulled the raven into another deep kiss, letting his tongue explore the taste of the other, easily allowing Sasuke to take control of the kiss so that he could lose himself in the sensation until the elevator doors opened again. He leaned back and craned his head toward the doors, checking to make sure it was the right floor. Sasuke took the opportunity to attack his neck again, making the blond chuckle and push him lightly towards the doors.

"Have your keys ready, bastard?" he said, ignoring way the raven growled slightly before turning and tugging the blond to the doorway of his apartment. Naruto chuckled as the raven made quick work of the lock. After the door was opened, the blond found himself quickly pressed against the other side of the door as the raven made short work of removing his shirt. It seemed like Déjà vu all over again.

Except this time, the hands that stripped him naked didn't tug him into the bedroom. This time, they held him against the door as the raven licked and bit and kissed his way down the blond's body, kneeling and taking his erection into his mouth with no hesitation. Naruto bucked into the raven's mouth, knees going weak. He let his fingers twine in silky black hair, turning his back to lean into the corner where the door met the wall as Sasuke encouraged him to lift one leg so that he was exposed to the raven's questing fingers.

Sasuke's mouth was voracious, and he used his fingers to wrap around the base of Naruto's cock, pumping his length as the raven sucked on the head of his cock. He felt Sasuke's tongue play over the underside of the head. Then his hand came forward, teasing the head, wrapping around it in partner with his mouth, causing Naruto to buck into the tight wet grip. Then the fingers were tracing back again, this time wet with saliva, to tease his entrance. He relaxed with ease, crying out as Sasuke pulled him forward and pushed him down on all fours. He'd evidently decided he was ready.

Naruto looked back and watched as Sasuke unzipped his own pants, freeing his cock from confinement. The blond watched it hungrily, wiggling his ass a bit. He noticed the way Sasuke's eyes lit up at the sight. The raven wasted no time in spitting into his hand so that he could make some effort at slicking up his cock, then he was on his knees behind Naruto and pressing in.

It was tight, almost painfully so. Naruto knew that it was because of the lack of proper lube, but he didn't care. It was Sasuke inside him, after all. Never in a million years would he have thought that he would be here right now, in this moment. Then all thoughts were gone as Sasuke's cock rubbed against that perfect spot deep inside him, and one of the raven's hands, still slick with saliva, came down to squeeze his aching cock. The other hand slid across his chest and wrapped around his shoulder, helping give the raven leverage as they moved together, savoring the feeling of being joined as one.

The insistent press of Sasuke's cock pounding into his ass pushed him closer and closer to the edge. He let his head fall to rest on his hands on the floor, ignoring the feeling of tatami pressing against his elbows as they took more weight. Sasuke changed angles a bit, letting his weight drive him deeper and deeper into Naruto's ass. The blond panted, whimpering Sasuke's name as he gave himself over, doing all he could to milk pleasure out of the raven so that they would both reach the end of this amazing journey together.

It was the raven's voice whispering "Come for me, Naruto" that sent him spiraling over the edge – that, and the feeling of the raven shuddering inside him, crying out softly and holding him close.

They rested there for a moment, and then Sasuke slid out of him and sat with his back against the wall. Naruto lowered himself to the ground, letting his head rest on the raven's thigh.

Sasuke idly ran his finger through the damp blond hair, and whispered, "Welcome home."

Naruto smiled, nuzzling against the raven's leg. "It's good to be home," he said in response.

. . .

Deidara hummed happily, resting his head on Itachi's stomach.

"You're seriously just going to lie there?"

The blond smirked. "You're the one who talked about Uchiha's needing to have patience."

The other raven growled. "I meant Sasuke. Sasuke needs patience. I have patience."

"Then why are you complaining?" Deidara said sweetly.

Itachi huffed in reply, testing the handcuffs that bound his wrists to the headboard. "You do realize you're going to be in a world of hurt when I get out of these, right?"

"Now, now, is that any way to convince me to do something other than just lying here, enjoying my latest magazine?"

"Deidara –"

The blond laughed, nuzzling the raven's stomach with the back of his head. "Think Naruto and Sasuke made it home in one piece?"

"What have I told you about talking about other men in our bed?"

Spoilsport, Deidara thought. He turned on his side looking up at the blindfold on Itachi's face. "Oh, come on, it's your brother," he said, letting his fingers walk up the raven's ribs to tweak his nipple.

Itachi sighed. "Fine."

"You realize that those guys being together will make things more interesting around here? Especially since Naruto will be moving over."

"Hn."

"It reminds me of this old Winston Churchill quote I heard once, something like 'Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.' Fits, yeah?"

"Dei," Itachi ground out, "I don't really care. Are you going to keep torturing me with this crap or are you going to get up here and let me fuck you so that I don't have to rip this head board apart and come after you myself?"

Deidara smirked, leaning up to kiss the raven lightly before hopping off the bed and going to the door. Seemed his Uchiha still had a bit to learn about patience.

"Deidara? Where are you going? I swear to – Deidara, get your fucking ass back in here!"

The blond chuckled as he walked down the stairs to the kitchen to get a couple glasses of water. In for a penny, in for a pound – or a pounding, he supposed. He smirked. These little episodes were always so much fun – and the response once Itachi was free would be so very very worth it.

It's not like he had a lot of walking to do the next week, anyhow.

…

Sasuke pulled the blond closer, nuzzling the back of his neck. Naruto hummed appreciatively, and then said, "It's good to be here."

"It's very good to have you here," Sasuke said, letting his breath fan over the other's ear and appreciating the shiver that made its way through the body in his arms. They were both very satisfied at the moment, but it was nice to know he could still get a rise out of his lover. "You said you have some good news?"

"Mmmm, yep. Sakura asked me to be the head of our new Japanese branch," Naruto said.

Sasuke felt his breath catch in his throat. He hadn't even though about that possibility. Suddenly, the future lay wide open ahead of him. He slowly smirked, tightening his grip on the blond. "You're moving over here?"

"Yeah," Naruto said softly, pressing back against him.

"When?"

"A couple weeks, probably. Not sure how long it will take to get all the visas worked out, and I need to pack and all."

"I see," Sasuke said, nibbling on the delicious neck of his blond and thinking about things in his mind. "I should have some vacation time saved up."

Naruto chuckled. "You're coming with me?"

"Of course," Sasuke said. "I don't trust you. Dobe."

"Hey!" Naruto said, trying to turn around. He quieted down quickly after a soft bite to the back of his neck. That was a very useful spot to know about. "You don't trust me?" the blond finally said, slightly petulant.

"Well, I won't be able to let you walk out the door from now on without wondering if you have your cell phone."

"Hmph," the blond said, able to chuckle at himself. "Where was it, anyhow?"

"I think under the bed."

"It's probably your fault."

"My fault?"

"Yeah, you and all your rushing to undress me, I bet it fell out of my pocket or something."

"Hn. Still not my fault."

"Then what do you call it, bastard?"

"Your fault, of course," Sasuke said, rubbing forward against the other man's ass, "for being so blatantly molestible."

Naruto sighed happily, squeezing the raven's hands resting on his chest. "I suppose I can't complain. Bastard."

"That's right," Sasuke said, letting one of his hands drift lower to tease the blond's belly button, fingers tracing the tattoo he knew was there. "Dobe," he murmured.

Naruto sighed happily. "Your dobe," he said.

Sasuke squeezed him, letting his forehead rest against the back of the blond's head. "Absolutely," he said, rolling them over so that he was hovering above the blond, looking deep into those lazy blue eyes.

The blond smirked. "Then that means you're my teme, teme."

Chuckling, Sasuke leaned down to capture the blond's soft lips, nibbling on them before teasing them open and plundering the deliciousness of his mouth. The blond's hands slipped down to his ass, pulling him closer, letting him feel that the blond was no longer too exhausted to continue their previous activities. Smirking into the kiss, he flipped them, humming appreciatively as Naruto moved to straddle him.

The blond grinned down at him, reaching a hand back to stroke the raven's cock. "Ready for round… what number is it?"

Sasuke bucked up as the blond's hand pressed him against the soft skin of Naruto's ass. "Idiot."

"Ah, I suppose it doesn't matter."

Narrowing his eyes, Sasuke pressed up insistently; letting his hands grip the blond's hips as the other man lowered himself onto the raven's cock. He didn't care about the number. All he cared about was pushing into that tight heat that was still slick from the previous times, and the groans wrung from the blond's mouth as he bucked up into him. He cared about being able to watch the face of his blond as the passion built between them, knowing that he could feel and touch and have every inch of this man's body – not just for tonight, but in the future as well.

They rocked together, blue eyes meeting dark grey, the passion building between them. Sasuke dug his fingers into the blond's hips, pulling his knees up for better leverage with which to pound into the blond. The other rocked his hips from side to side and tightened his ass, holding the raven's cock captive exactly where it wanted to be. They drove each other closer towards completion, bodies working in perfect harmony until Sasuke felt the passion overwhelm him. He came with a cry, feeling the heat of the blond's seed on his stomach before the other man fell forward, embracing him. He wrapped his arms around the other, clinging to him and sinking into the echoes of orgasm still racing through his body.

After a few minutes Naruto nuzzled his neck. Sasuke smiled, hugging his lover in the afterglow. His blond. His Dobe. His Naruto. He had found him, and this time, he was never going to let him go.

~~~Fin~~~

**... . . . ... . . . ... . . . ...**

**Juura99 - hehe, *that* happens next :P :P soooo glad you are enjoying it soo much :)**

**Ai Enmaxjigoku shoujo - hope you enjoyed it!**

**Darkloverkitsune - well, i didn't make you wait tooo long :)**

**Shamalan - tsk tsk tsk. And yeah, I plan to go back and fix everything... just wanted to push it out. thanks for calling me on my lazyness. this one should be better.**

**Afira - ^_^ I think Naru's much much much too busy to think about Jiraiya atm... :P~~**

**Imarriedmalfoy - dun dun dun! hope you're still alive and haven't died from exessive bloodloss :)**

**MuffinzRBeast24 - mwuhahaha :) but but... ok, so i watch too many tv shows. besides, cliffies make you wonder about the possibilities, right? And you didn't have to wait toooo long!**

**A/N - if it hasn't been clear, I *do* plan on continuing this storyline in a sequel. First though, I'm planning to write out When All Is Said And Done, so hopefully you don't mind waiting... thank you allll for sticking with me to the end and for all the delicious comments and favs and watches and love and omg you guys are awesome. Ja Ne!~~~~~**


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